The Ministry of Fisheries, Marine Resources and Agriculture has published the regulations on fishing and sustaining skipjack tuna stock in the Maldives.
The regulations aim to maintain a sustainable stock of skipjack tuna in order for the Maldives to continue benefiting from fishing in the long term. The regulations contain policies on how to conduct activities related to skipjack tuna fishing, implement the Fishery Management Plan, provide fishing licenses, and monitor and control fishing-related activities.
The regulations dictate that parties are required to obtain a license from the fisheries ministry prior to being involved in fishing, processing, and the sale of skipjack tuna. It also details the criteria by which licenses can be renewed or revoked.
Furthermore, the regulations ban foreign crewmen from being directly involved in fishing but are allowed to handle other work on the fishing vessel such as cooking and security-related matters. Each fishing vessel is allowed to hire a maximum of two foreign workers.
The regulations also provide details on the number of fines to be issued for the violation of its rules and policies. Additionally, the regulations require an advisory committee to be formed in order to advise the fisheries ministry on matters related to skipjack tuna fishing.