Maldives Customs Services, along with United Nations Office on Drugs (UNODC), have commenced a training programme on fisheries crime for relevant authorities.The programme held at Customs Head Office is the first ever training programme on fisheries crime conducted in Maldives.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony of the training programme, Director of Ministry of Fisheries and Agriculture Adam Ziyad stated that this training programme is crucial to the Maldives in order to secure the fisheries sector in the country. Since Maldives is hugely dependent on the fisheries sector, it is important for authorities to be familiar with fisheries crimes, stated Adam Ziyad.
Speaking regarding the training programme, Senior Superintendent of Customs, Ahmed Niyaz noted that participants will be familiarised on issues such as transportation of drugs on fishing vessels and on illicit import of goods.
20 participants are taking part in the training programme including participation from Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF), Maldives Police Services and Customs. The training programme is being facilitated by professionals from UNODC. The aim of the programme is to ensure the sustainability of fish species, prevent violence against fishing communities, and combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing.
Fisheries crime rate has been drastically increasing among Indian Ocean countries, even though none were recorded in Maldives.