On a windy day in January 2020, fishermen in the Okaibeh port, in Mount Lebanon, sell their freshly caught fish, sorted according to the species. Others mend their nets in preparation for their next fishing trip.

The Okaibeh fishermen shared stories and aspirations with fishing experts Mr. Ahmad AlMazraoui, Mr. Marouene Bdioui from FAO and Mr. Nicola Ferri from GFCM, in the context of a mission carried out from the 25^th until the 31^st of January 2020, with the support of the Lebanese Ministry of Agriculture.

In addition to the Okaibeh port, FAO international and local fisheries experts and Ministry of Agriculture experts visited Jounieh, Abdeh, Saida, Sarafand, Tyr, Al Mina/Tripoli and Dora ports conducting interviews with fishermen and observing fishing vessels and gears.

During their meeting with H.E Minister of Agriculture, Mr. Abbas Mortada, the experts discussed the strategic solutions for preserving and sustaining fisheries resources in light of the challenges facing the sector. The minister stressed the importance of strengthening the capacities of the Lebanese fishermen in addition to applying the necessary standards and conditions for protecting and sustaining the fisheries sector.

The experts also met with the Director-General of the Ministry of Agriculture, Director General of the Marine and Land Transport at the Ministry of Public Works and Transport, the Commander of the Lebanese Navy at Beirut Naval Base, staff from the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife (DFW) at the Ministry of Agriculture and other Ministry relevant staff, UN agencies, donors and NGOs.

In this context, the fishing experts kicked off the work for undertaking the fishing vessel census by training the enumerators and data collectors of the Ministry of Agriculture on survey methodology and details of an elaborated questionnaire. Following the training, they went to the Dora Fishing Port and tested its application.

The last fishing vessel census was performed in 2004. The forthcoming census questionnaire compiles about 16 sections related to the fishermen, vessel and its requisites and the gears and equipment used in the fishing activities.

At the request of the Ministry of Agriculture, and through FAO’s technical cooperation programme, FAO Lebanon launched in September 2019 a project which will provide the Lebanese Government the technical assistance to accurately assess the fishing fleet and its related requisites. For this purpose, a national census will be conducted.