PANAPRESS
Panafrican News Agency
Mauritius: Documentaries on management of tuna in Indian Ocean produced
Ebène, Mauritius (PANA) - The Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) has produced, under the "SmartFish" programme funded by the European Union, three documentaries on tuna fishing in the Indian Ocean, PANA learnt from the seat of the Commission at Ebène, Mauritius, Thursday.
Shot in Mauritius, Madagascar and Seychelles, the three films each present the challenges that this key-sector in the regional economy faces, mainly regarding the protection of the tuna resources, the management of fish catches and the new measures of tuna fishing techniques.
IOC's General Secretary Jean-Claude de l’Estrac said fishing would always remain an important sector in regional cooperation ''with regard to our vast exclusive economic zones, their wealth in halieutic resources and the migratory character of this same resources''.
According to him, the Indian Ocean possesses the second largest stock of tuna on the planet and close to 20% of tuna traded in the world comes from this part of the world.
This represents about a million tons annually valued at US$3 billion.
Mr de l'Estrac said the transformation of tuna in the region has given birth to an excellent regional sector whose raw material comes mainly from the waters of Seychelles and the canal of Mozambique.
"Extensively turned towards exports to the European Union, this industry represents also a vector for regional growth that employs directly more than 12,000 people. It also represents an additional potential of wealth creation that our islands need to learn. This is our ambition as well as that of the industry," he said.
For his part, chargé d'affaires of the EU Delegation in Mauritius Aldo Dell’Ariccia laid emphasis on the development of this industry that plays a determining role in the growth of the regional economy.
"Port Victoria, in Seychelles, has become one of the main tuna ports in the world; tuna transformation is one the pillars of the economy in Mauritius and with Madagascar, the region of the Indian Ocean catches 25% of the share of tuna imports to the EU,'' he disclosed.
-0- PANA NA/JSG/ACK/SEG 16July2015
Shot in Mauritius, Madagascar and Seychelles, the three films each present the challenges that this key-sector in the regional economy faces, mainly regarding the protection of the tuna resources, the management of fish catches and the new measures of tuna fishing techniques.
IOC's General Secretary Jean-Claude de l’Estrac said fishing would always remain an important sector in regional cooperation ''with regard to our vast exclusive economic zones, their wealth in halieutic resources and the migratory character of this same resources''.
According to him, the Indian Ocean possesses the second largest stock of tuna on the planet and close to 20% of tuna traded in the world comes from this part of the world.
This represents about a million tons annually valued at US$3 billion.
Mr de l'Estrac said the transformation of tuna in the region has given birth to an excellent regional sector whose raw material comes mainly from the waters of Seychelles and the canal of Mozambique.
"Extensively turned towards exports to the European Union, this industry represents also a vector for regional growth that employs directly more than 12,000 people. It also represents an additional potential of wealth creation that our islands need to learn. This is our ambition as well as that of the industry," he said.
For his part, chargé d'affaires of the EU Delegation in Mauritius Aldo Dell’Ariccia laid emphasis on the development of this industry that plays a determining role in the growth of the regional economy.
"Port Victoria, in Seychelles, has become one of the main tuna ports in the world; tuna transformation is one the pillars of the economy in Mauritius and with Madagascar, the region of the Indian Ocean catches 25% of the share of tuna imports to the EU,'' he disclosed.
-0- PANA NA/JSG/ACK/SEG 16July2015
