The Ministry of Fisheries, Agriculture and Ocean Resources has said that the government has so far installed 99 fish aggregating devices (FADs) at various locations across the Maldives.
Two types of FADs are currently used in the Maldives: FADs, installed primarily for skipjack tuna fishing, and FADs, installed mainly for sports fishing and reef fishing. According to the fisheries ministry, of the 99 FADs established by the government so far, 47 are skipjack tuna fishing FADs and 52 are sports fishing and reef fishing FADs. The ministry noted that this is an unprecedented number of FADs installed in the Maldives by any previous government.
Minister of Fisheries, Agriculture and Ocean Resources Ahmed Shiyam said that the government would give the highest priority this month to efforts to replace FADs that have been lost or damaged. As FADs are closely linked to the daily livelihoods of fishermen, the government aims to find swift solutions to the difficulties caused when FADs go missing.
The government is also working to establish a nationwide network of offshore FADs. The minister said this work is expected to be fully completed by the end of february next year.
Minister Shiyam has previously said that the current administration has set a record for the installation of FADs. In this regard, he said that 44 sports fishing and reef fishing FADs were installed last year alone.
FADs are important equipment on which fishermen rely heavily, and the loss of a FAD can cause significant difficulties for them. Therefore, the ministry is giving particular priority to repairing and replacing FADs that have been lost.