Ministry of Fisheries, Marine Resources and Agriculture has stated there are no plans to reverse the ban imposed on shark fishing in the Maldives. The fisheries ministry made the statement in a press release issued to clarify concerns around potential amendments to the shark ban in the Maldives.
In the statement, the fisheries ministry noted the Maldives adopted the Precautionary Approach and imposed a ban on shark fishing within its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in 2010 following serious concerns regarding the status of shark stocks in Maldivian waters, as well as the Indian Ocean in general. The ministry stated the Maldives was the first Indian Ocean country to declare the whole of its EEZ as a shark sanctuary.
In relation to concerns regarding recent statements made by the Minister of Fisheries, Marine Resources and Agriculture Zaha Waheed at the Parliamentary Committee on Economic Affairs, the ministry clarified that her statement relating to amendments to the ban was made in relation to discussions on re-instating longline fishery targeting bigeye tuna and the discussions that had taken place internally at a technical level within the ministry concerning the potential bycatch of sharks in the longline fishery, including management of this bycatch. The ministry stated in no way were these discussions focused on lifting the ban on shark fishery.
The fisheries ministry further stated following 10 years of a complete ban on catching of sharks, fishers operating in internal waters targeting reef-based species and handline yellowfin tuna fishers have raised complaints that their respective fisheries and income have been seriously affected by wide-spread depredation in recent years. The ministry said in order to understand these impacts, the Maldives Marine Research Institute (MMRI), through various research initiatives, have been conducting scientific surveys to assess shark populations and the scale of shark depredation in other fisheries. However, the ministry said preliminary results of these surveys do not indicate that the shark populations have significantly increased or fully recovered since the inception of the ban.
The fisheries ministry stated the perceived increase in shark populations and the frequency of depredation may be linked to easier access to food sources due to regular shark feeding practices as well as the practice of disposing bio-degradable waste into the ocean. The ministry noted such activities have been found to have a negative impact on the natural hunting behaviour of sharks. The ministry urges the public, divers and the tourism industry to refrain from feeding or chumming as a means to attract sharks.
The fisheries ministry further stated it does not intend to permit a targeted shark fishery in the Maldives. The ministry said it understands the concerns raised by fishers over impacts to their livelihood and welcomes open dialogue with all stakeholders on how best to protect the shared natural resources, while maintaining sustainable traditional means of livelihoods.