Abdul Rahman Al-Ali Saudi Gazette JEDDAH – Illegal fishing causes countries enormous losses, said Dr. Zaid Abo Ghararah, secretary general of the Regional Organization for the Conservation of the Environment of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden (PERSGA). Annual loss from illegal fishing is estimated at $10 billon, he said, adding that this practice has negative social and environmental effects as well. It reduces the amount of fish licensed fishermen can get access to and threatens the marine environment because fishermen use illegal fishing tools, he claimed. Some of them go to closed areas where fishing is not allowed, he added. Numerous global laws regarding illegal fishing have been implemented while an action plan by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization has been developed to urge relevant global organizations to exert more efforts toward cracking down on this practice. Abo Ghararah said PERSGA representatives will meet Sunday in Jeddah to discuss several fishing issues with experts and inspectors from Jordan, Egypt, Sudan, Djibouti and Yemen. A workshop will be held to adopt a regional action plan to fight illegal fishing in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden and encourage regional cooperation to achieve this goal, Abo Ghararah said. The workshop will focus on ways to develop national plans and revise regional laws to incorporate global legislation on fishing. Participants will learn about the tools they should use and procedures they should take to fight illegal fishing.
