Oman, with copious marine resources still untapped, is attracting more investments in the aquaculture sector which will benefit the overall growth. A token of this move was manifested with the launch of a set of by-laws and investment guidelines at the ministry by Dr Fuad bin Jaafar al Sajwani, Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, yesterday.

“We are attracting more investments in aqua-farming by opening the doors to individuals and specialised companies interested in utilising the promising investment opportunities in this sector,” the minister said. He added that the Ministerial Decision No (177/2012) issued aqua-farming and its quality control by-law. The by-law, which was prepared in co-operation with experts from the Sultanate, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and other countries, includes 80 articles.

Dr Sajwani added that the ministry has plans to support small fish farmers by preparing the facilities, fish population, fodder, technical services and marketing the products at the final stage. The ministry expects that the Sultanate’s fish production would increase by 220,000 tonnes by 2030.

It is also expected that the sector will contribute to direct state revenues by RO 342 million and RO 786.6 million in GDP. Moreover, it will generate job opportunities for Omanis, 50 jobs for each one tonne produced by aquafarming and its associated activities. The by-law aims at manifold targets some of which are generating the necessary legal framework to establish projects related to this sector, while ensuring that they do not have a negative impact on the environment and public health, maximising the sector’s contribution to the GDP, generating job opportunities for Omanis and contributing to achieve food security.

The by-law basically has three chapters the first of which covers definitions and general rules while the second chapter covers the quality control of the aquatic organisms to ensure producing high quality fishes that are free of any biological or chemical pollutants. The third chapter covers violations and the penalties, as well as the administrative guidelines. Applications for investments may be submitted through a specially designated form for this purpose. The applications should be supported with documents, which would help the ministry to ensure that the potential investor has the required resources.

The applications that meet requirements will be submitted to a specialised committee, which will grant initial licence for six months during which the potential investor can prepare the feasibility study. The feasibility studies will be evaluated by a technical team of experts and will be submitted to the specialised committee, which will give its recommendations whether to grant the commercial licence or not.

Speaking to the Observer on the sidelines of the announcement, Saud al Habsi, Director-General of the Ministry of Fisheries and Agriculture, said: “Oman has a very long coastal belt which is highly proactive to aquaculture development and we are expecting about $ 100,000 million to be invested in aquaculture”. He further added, “Additionally, we are expecting about RO 320 million to be invested by 2030 in Oman’s aquafarming by the private sector”.

He pointed out that in Musandam Oman has huge potential for aquaculture as it is the home for lagoons and in Batinah area, it’s a good area for integrated farming, which envisages fisheries and agriculture. The minister further said that the ministry has approved to allocate 30,196,622 square metres for aquafarming projects. Experts have also conducted studies on aquafarming and the possible effects on fish prices in the Sultanate.

The study concluded that aquafarming is not a competitor to the fish industry, but rather complimentary to it. It will limit the price hike and avail job opportunities. It is expected that, in addition to generating a large number of job opportunities for the Omani nationals, the proposed development plans will contribute to direct state revenues by RO 342 million and RO 786.6 million in GDP. As to the job potential, it will make at least 50 jobs for each one tonne produced by aquafarming and its allied activities.