The Fisheries Ministry has announced its goal to complete the registration of all licensed fishing vessels and their crew members in the national registry before the end of October.
The Ministry stated that under the efforts to register fishermen and vessels, more than 50% of the fishing vessels operating in Sh., R., GA., GDh., and Gn. atolls have been registered in the national fishermen's registry so far. The Ministry added that the exact number of registered fishing vessels and crew members will be disclosed later. According to information shared by the Fisheries Ministry with this newspaper last Wednesday, 542 fishermen and 172 vessel owners from various regions have been registered to date.
Included in the government's Week-14 roadmap, the Fisheries Ministry opened the compilation of the fishermen's registry and registration on February 16 of this year. It will be seven months by the 16th of this month. Therefore, considering the population of fishermen, a relatively small number has been registered during this period.
To expedite the registration of fishermen, the Maldives has been divided into 6 zones, and Ministry teams are actively working. The Ministry also stated that teams are scheduled to travel to all atolls in the Maldives in the coming days.
The Ministry said that its teams will be active in Lh., Dh., L., GA., GDh., and S. atolls this week. Specifically, teams will work in fish purchasing areas in the coming days, with the aim of meeting as many fishermen as possible to provide information regarding the Keyolha application and the registry, the Ministry stated. The Ministry also mentioned plans to conduct information sessions for fishermen in collaboration with island councils to facilitate the registration process.
As the government's policy is to make fishermen a group registered with a state institution, the Fisheries Ministry has stated that once the registry work is completed, official information on all fishing vessels, captains, and crew members operating in the Maldives will be stored and maintained in the Ministry's database.
