KUCHING: The Sarawak Marine Fisheries Department has been granted a budget of over RM17mil under the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP) to enhance fisheries resource management and increase fish production.
Minister for Food Industry, Commodity, and Regional Development, Datuk Seri Dr Stephen Rundi Utom revealed that the establishment of a Sarawak-owned Department of Fisheries, currently in the planning stage, aimed to expedite and regulate the development of the fisheries industry.
“The main goal is to facilitate and encourage active participation from Sarawakians to harness the significant potential of the deep-sea fishing sector.
He further noted that Sarawak now had the authority to issue deep-sea fishing licences, following the empowerment granted to the state government by the federal government under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) agreement in 2022.
“Currently, there are 560 deep-sea fishing vessel quotas available for licensing in Sarawak waters, of which only 156 or 28 per cent have been issued thus far.”
Dr Rundi made these remarks during his ministerial winding-up speech at the DUN sitting on today (May 23).
“Presently, Sarawak has a total of 10,828 registered fishermen and 5,013 vessels, resulting in an annual fish production of 125,000 metric tonnes valued at over RM716mil,” he added.
