Country review: Maldives

M. Shiham Adam
Marine Research Centre, Maldives
November 2004

INTRODUCTION

Maldives is an archipelago of nearly 1 200 coral islands grouped into 19 widely dispersed atolls covering an area of nearly 90 000 km² in the centre of the Indian Ocean. The country’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) covers an area of nearly one million km². Marine resources are the country’s main natural endowments, with economic activities concentrated on tuna fishing and tourism. Currently, marine capture fisheries account for 9.0 percent of GDP, 17.0 percent^[408] of employment and 66.3 percent (by value) of the country’s export commodities.

Tuna fishing is a well-established activity in the Maldives, with a history spanning over 750 years. The mechanization of the fishing fleet in the 1970s led to a rapid increase over historic tuna catches: from about 30 000 tonnes in the 1980s to over 90 000 tonnes in 1997; increasing to a record catch of 138 751 tonnes in 2003 (MoFAMR, 2003). Tuna fishing represents about 90 percent^[409] of the total fish for food catches in the Maldives as reported in the national statistics (Table 1).

TABLE 1
Recent fish landings in Maldivian waters (tonnes)

Notes: * Estimated catch; ^† Excludes bait fish catch.
Source: Ministry of Fisheries, Agriculture, and Marine Resources.

The Maldivian tuna fishery is concentrated in the nearshore waters; so, a large area of the Maldivian EEZ is relatively unfished. However, a small fleet of longline, essentially foreign vessels, operates in the EEZ, targeting adult bigeye and yellowfin tunas. Recorded catch of this longline fleet is currently about 5 000 tonnes per year, believed to be grossly underreported. A small-scale handline fleet operates in nearshore waters targeting surface swimming large yellowfin (> 80 cm FL). Their catch of about 3 000 - 4 000 tonnes per year is exported either as a fresh product to a lucrative Japanese sashimi market or packed as loins for export to Europe.

The reef fishery resources were hardly exploited in the past (Adam et al., 1997). However, with the rapid socio-economic development following the expansion of tourism and together with improved air and sea-transport, a number of reef fisheries^[410] have developed for both for local consumption and for export markets. These include the aquarium fishery, beche-de-mer (sea-cucumber), grouper fisheries.

For the purpose of this review, marine fishing activities have been grouped into two subcategories: 1) industrial tuna^[411], bait, and shark fisheries; and 2) small-scale fisheries^[412] comprising handline tuna and reef fisheries.

Information in this review was obtained from a variety of sources, including interviews with senior staff of Maldives’ Ministry of Fisheries, Agriculture and Marine Resources, the Basic Fisheries Statistics^[413], Statistical Year Books and other recent documentation.

POLICY FRAMEWORK

The mechanization of the fishing fleet in the mid 1970s was a conscious and concerted effort by the Government. In the early 1980s, the policy on fishery development and management was guided by the need to serve the social objectives as the fisheries sector employed the highest proportion of the labor force (over 50 percent at national level and particularly more in the outer islands) and provided food security. Therefore, the Government deemed it important to protect the livelihood of fishermen and to ensure the Maldivians remain active in the tuna fishery industry. Thus, until recently, the sector was protected from large-scale competition and was heavily subsidized by the Government.

The policy objectives are set forth in the National Development Plan (NDP); which is reviewed every four to five years. The most recent NDP covers the 2001 -2005 period and also mirrors the long term goals as set out in the Vision 2020^[414]. The overreaching objective of the current policy is to liberalize the tuna industry through greater private sector involvement and to stimulate economic diversification of fishery and, thereby increasing the value-added export products. As for the reef fisheries resources the objective is minimize the dependency on wild caught species by promoting mariculture of those species that are being exported.

The Maldivian fisheries are dominated by relatively low-value pole-and-line skipjack fishing; while fisheries targeting high-value tuna species (such as large yellowfin and bigeye tuna) remain at low landings levels. Similarly, a large proportion of the tuna exports are frozen, canned or as “Maldives fish,”^[415] low-value products. Thus, as mentioned above, diversifying the tuna fishery towards high-value, non-traditional species is a priority of the Government and attaining this evolution through greater private sector participation is highlighted in the current NDP.

While achieving the medium to long term objective of liberalizing the tuna industry and promoting mariculture of export varieties of reef fish, the management goal is to achieve sustainable utilization of the fisheries resources. Strengthening of monitoring activities, increasing research, devolution of management to the island communities and participating in regional fishery bodies are all important strategies set forth in the NDP to achieve the overall fishery management objective.

LEGAL FRAMEWORK

Development and management of capture fisheries in the Maldives is governed by the Fisheries Law of the Maldives (Law No. 5/87, August 24, 1987). The Law contains provisions on use and exploitation of the living marine resources, particularly fishery resources and on foreign licensed fisheries conducted in the EEZ of the Maldives.

The Ministry of Fisheries, Agriculture, and Marine Resources (MoFAMR) is charged with implementation of this Law and has the legal authority to make rules and regulations relevant to its implementation^[416]. The responsibility for the enforcement of laws in the Maldives lies with the Ministry of Defense and National Security.

For the purposes of fisheries management, the Fisheries Law defines the EEZ as the area bounded between 75 - 200 nautical miles. Commercial fishing in the EEZ, both local and foreign parties, requires an annual fishing license provided by the Ministry of Trade and Industries following guidelines provided by the MoFAMR. The area bounded within the 75 mile limit is called a Coastal Fishery Zone which is exclusively reserved for Maldivian fishermen (Figure 1). The fisheries in the Coastal Fisheries Zone do not require licensing.

The Environmental Protection and Conservation Act, EPCA (Law Number 4/93) contains provisions for conservation of biological diversity and protected areas and natural reserves. The responsibility for the implementation of the EPCA falls under Ministry of Environment and Construction (MoEC). Both the EPCA and the Fisheries Law are taken together in formulating regulations and governing the capture fisheries. Guidance is sought from the Fisheries Advisory Board which meets on ad hoc basis. The FAB is represented by high level government officials representing line ministers. The chairman of the board is the Minister of Fisheries, Agriculture, and Marine Resources.

The Marine Research Centre (MRC) is the research arm of the MoFAMR; however, due to human resource constraints at MRC, proper and regular stock assessments are not carried out. Instead MRC provides ad hoc reviews and general assessments of the resources as and when required by the Ministry.

Lack of human and financial resource impedes the effective implementation of the rules and regulations. In the Maldives, new rules and regulations are announced through media, but are not supported by dissemination of this information through local government authorities. Therefore, the lack of awareness and existing rules and regulation by the general public contributes non-compliance. Also lack of monitoring and enforcement, coordination between the administrators and lack of real deterrents to non-compliance contributes to the issue.

In order to address shortcomings of the current Fisheries Law and its implementation, a comprehensive revision of the law is underway and most of the drafting work is now complete. The new Law emphasizes the conservation and management of the living marine resources and allows for devolution of fisheries management. In addition, the new Law will also address weaknesses in fisheries law penalties. Current penalties include mostly one-off cash fines that are not high enough to act as a deterrent.

STATUS OF THE FISHERIES

Fisheries used to be the highest contributor to the Maldivian GDP. However, in 1985, the tourism sector surpassed fisheries in terms of its GDP contribution. In spite the continued increase in total catch the contribution to GDP has been declining; from almost 16 percent in 1989 it fell to just lower than 9 percent in 2004^[417]. This decline in the proportion to GDP contribution by fisheries is due to spectacular increase in the tourism sector over the last 20 years. In real terms the value of the two major fisheries increased from 24 million US$ in 1989 to just over 40 million US$ in 2003 (Table 2).

Tuna species remain the major fishery resources exploited in the country as more than 80 percent of the total capture fisheries are tunas; of these, the main component of the catch is skipjack tuna (Table 1). The total recorded volume of the tuna fisheries has been increasing. Total tunas caught increased from 103 885 tonnes in 1998 to 138 751 tonnes in 2003. While this increase of tuna catch within the five years is 11 percent, non-tuna varieties (i.e., reef fisheries’ catch, including sharks) increased to 17 percent (from 14 230 tonnes in 1998 to 16 664 tonnes in 2003).

Tunas are believed to be part of the wider Indian Ocean stock(s); therefore, strictly national-based management measures are ineffective for managing these migratory species. The most recent Indian Ocean wide assessment of bigeye tuna showed that the stock has reached to maximum sustainable level and that a continued increase in catch of juveniles in purse-seine surface fishery is a major concern (IOTC, 2003). The situation with yellowfin is unclear, but it is believed current catches are close to maximum sustainable yield (IOTC, 2003). Maldives should become a full member of the IOTC so that its national objectives could be addressed within the overall IOTC framework of tuna management in the Indian Ocean.

The tuna pole-and-line method requires copious amount of live bait which are caught from lagoons and reefs (80 -150 kg/fishing trip^[418]). As there are no holding pens (or cages), bait fish are caught daily by the fishing vessel prior to almost every tuna fishing trip. There are no official statistics for bait fish catch and so bait catch is estimated using average weight of bait used per trip (Anderson 1996). The main species caught in the bait fishery are Sprats (Spratelloides gracilis, S. delicatulus), and various species of Casesionids, Apogonids, and Engraulidae (Encrasicholina heteroloba).

The third most important fishery in terms of catch volume is the shark fishery comprising deep water sharks (Centrophorus spp.), reef sharks, nearshore pelagic sharks, and offshore oceanic sharks. Reef sharks are considered to be grossly overexploited in the Maldives (McAlister Elliot & Partners, 2002).

An export-oriented grouper fishery started in 1994. Groupers aggregate to spawn and are targeted using drop handline gear. The fishery peaked in 1997 exporting over 0.9 million groupers a year. The fishery continued to decline since then. In 2003 less than 0.3 million groupers were exported^[419]. It is concluded that the fishery is heavily over-exploited requiring urgent management action.

TABLE 2
Characteristics of the three major fisheries (by volume) in Maldives (2003)

Notes: * Estimated catch, ^† Value of export products only; 1 US$ = 12.75 Maldivian Rufiyaa.

Sources: MoFAMR 2003; MRC unpublished data (for estimating bait fish catch).

The export-oriented aquarium fishery is considered small-scale. Unlike in other parts of Southeast Asia, exporters and collectors are the same group. Over 175 000 fish and invertebrates were exported in 2002 earning about US$ 0.509 million making up to 0.91 percent of the total marine export value. The fishery is managed by species-specific export quota.

MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES

The fishery management activity in the Maldives is mostly limited to bans, prohibitions, setting up quotas, licensing schemes, and levying fees (royalties on fish exports). In setting up these measures, stakeholders are consulted either directly or indirectly through small workshops and other formal and informal consultations.

Roughly 50 percent of the fishery could be considered as having some form of such management activity (Table 3); however, no fishery is covered by a management plan. This number of fisheries managed has been increasing over the last couple of years as a reaction to conflicts with other fishery stakeholders or to over-exploitation of the resource.

TABLE 3
Management activities in Maldivian marine capture fisheries

The Marine Research Centre (MRC) of the MoFAMR has the responsibility of assessing the fishery resources. However, due to human resource constraints at MRC, proper and regular stock assessments are not carried out. Instead MRC provides ad hoc reviews and general assessments of the resources as and when required by the Ministry.

It is believed that shark fishery and grouper fisheries are heavily depleted. Roughly 25 percent of the capture fisheries could be considered as heavily depleted. Management measures adopted to address overfishing and rebuilding of depleted stocks include export bans, moratoriums, area closures, and restrictions on harvesting methods. There has not been a serious assessment to investigate whether these measures have resulted in improving the status of these stocks.

A major problem confronting the fisheries managers in the Maldives is the difficulty of enforcing the management measures. This is due to geographic spread of the islands and lack of human and financial resources, but also due to weaknesses in fisheries law penalties. A comprehensive revision of Fisheries Law is being undertaken to address these issues.

There are some rights-based measures still practiced although not strictly enforced they are now part of the fishery regulations. For instance, the fishery resources within the inhabited island reef and lagoon are considered a right of the community and they have the exclusive right for fish. The current regulation states anyone else wishing to fish should have prior and written permission from the island chief.

COSTS AND REVENUES OF FISHERIES MANAGEMENT

The principle funding source for management of the fisheries resources in the Maldives is the general government budget and there is no monetary contribution from the private sector. The costs of the management, in real terms, have increased over the past ten years as a result of increased administrative costs incurred due to implementation of the management measures in new fisheries. For example, in the reef fishery, where the resource base is limited and characterized by multiple users, considerable conflicts exist between the fisheries and tourism sector as non-extractive uses of the fishery resources has proved valuable. This has resulted increased monitoring and new regulations to manage the reef fisheries resources.

The Maldivian tuna fishermen operate within close range (< 50 miles) of the atolls and so the vast area of Maldivian EEZ is relatively unfished. Maldivian fishermen strongly believe that illegal fishing in the EEZ by foreign vessels affect their catchability and school formation in the nearshore areas. As a result Maldivian Coast Guard, which is under the Ministry of Defense and National Security gives high priority to monitor illegal activities. Although there is no routine surveillance, the Coast Guard has been responsive in dispatching their vessels when fishermen report illegal activity. The cost of monitoring has considerably increased as the number of vessel apprehended over the years has increased. During the period 1991 - 2000 roughly seven (range 2 - 17 per year) vessels per year were apprehended by the Coast Guard^[421].

IMPLEMENTATION OF GLOBAL FISHERIES MANDATES AND INITIATIVES

The Maldives has ratified UNCLOS and Fish Stocks Agreement. However, the Maldives is not party to the Compliance Agreement and there are no specific steps or actions undertaken for implementing these conventions.

Some measures have been taken to implement the International Plan of Actions. Maldives does not have high seas fishing fleet and the EEZ fishing is regulated through licensing and reporting of catch and effort data is mandatory. Measures have been taken to discourage shark fishing: a ten-year ban on any form of shark fishing in seven atolls within 12 miles to the coast was enacted in September, 1998.

PARTICIPATION IN REGIONAL FISHERY BODIES

Maldives has been participating in the regional fishery management organizations. In the past Maldives was a paying member of Indian Ocean Tuna Development and Management Programme (IPTP). The organization that replaced the activities of IPTP is the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission which has mandate for fisheries management and empowered to establish management measures. Maldives does not have a status with the IOTC and is neither a member nor a non-contracting cooperating member. However, Maldives has actively taken part in most of its working party meetings including provision of published data.

Maldives is also a member of the advisory body Bay of Bengal Programme Inter-Governmental Organization (BOBP-IGO), the scientific body INFOFISH, environmental/fisheries arrangement SACEP and the more recent BOBLME Programme.

Currently there is no legal mechanism to implement the management measures adopted by regional fisheries bodies such as the IOTC.

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

Tuna species dominate the capture fisheries of the Maldives. Although the pole-and-line method catches the bulk of the production, longline and handline fisheries are being developed as a means to diversify the fishery and an increase export earnings.

The exploitation of reef fisheries has also intensified over the last 15 years. Several of these fisheries are export-oriented and target high-valued species, exported to Asian markets. Roughly 20 percent of the capture fisheries in the Maldives may be considered over-exploited and all are reef fisheries. This number is expected to increase in the future. Funding for monitoring, research and management is entirely sourced from the government budget and private sector contribution for management of the resource is nil. There is no legal mechanism to allocate resource rent for research, monitoring, and enforcement.

The fishery management activities in the Maldives comprise licensing schemes, quotas, and prohibitions, bans, and levying royalties. The effective implementation (i.e., monitoring and enforcement) of theses measures has proved difficult due to lack of human and financial resources but also due to weakness in the existing legal framework. A comprehensive revision fisheries law is underway which would overcome these difficulties.

REFERENCES

Adam, M. S., Anderson, R.C. and Shakeel, H. 1997. Commercial exploitation of reef resources: examples of sustainable and non-sustainable utilization from the Maldives. Proceedings of the 8th International Coral Reef Symposium. H. A. Lessios and I. G. McIntyre. Balboa, Panama, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. 2: 2010-2020.

IOTC, 2003. Report of the Eighth Session of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission. Victoria, Seychelles, 7-12 December 2003. IOTC-S-08/03R[E]. 68p.

MPoD, 2001. National Development Plan, Ministry of Planning and National Development, Malé, Maldives. 104p.

MoFAMR, 2003. Fisheries Statistics 2003. Economic Research and Statistics Services, Ministry of Fisheries, Agriculture and Marine Resources. 20pp.

McAllister Elliot & Partners, 2002. Kulhudhuffushi Shark Fisheries. Regional Development Project Northern Development Region. A report prepared under the Regional Development Project for the Ministry of Planning and National Development, 32pp.

APPENDIX TABLES

Current management of marine capture fisheries in Maldives

^‡ Published regulations here means that it is in a form a report that is commonly referred for various agencies for the purpose of managing (for instance, assigning licenses/quotas) a fishery.

Summary information for three largest fisheries (by volume) in Maldives (Year 2003)

Value in 2003 U.S. Dollars. 1US$ = MRf 12.75

** % values are based on totals for each category of fishery.

Sources: Fisheries Statistics 2003, Economic Research and Statistics Services, MoFAMR. Bait fish data are estimated.

Use of fishery management tools within the three largest fisheries in Maldives

^† for some species.

Costs and funding sources of fisheries management within the three largest fisheries

Compliance and enforcement within the three largest fisheries in Maldives

^† EEZ component of the fishery.

Capacity management within the three largest fisheries in Maldives