The participants in the Working Group on Shrimp and Demersal Fishes held in Kuwait from 11 to 13 May 1996 observed that the amount of by-catch resulting from intensive shrimp trawling in the Gulfs is becoming a very serious problem for the stocks of demersal fish and for the sustainability of the fisheries in the region.
The following recommendation was made:
"With overfishing being a problem in every Gulfs country with a shrimp trawl industry which is known to have a serious impact on non-target species, i.e. by-catch, it is recommended that by-catch reduction devices (BRDs) be tested in the region and introduced in the fishery."
It is worth noting that a few countries of the Gulfs have already carried out some experiments aiming at reducing by-catch (Bahrain, Iran).
After the Working Group, a number of Gulfs countries consulted the Fisheries Department of FAO requesting information and documents related to the by-catch reduction devices already developed in various parts of the world, in particular in Australia and the USA. Later, one of the Gulfs countries made a formal request to FAO for tests of by-catch reduction devices to be arranged in the region and several countries of the region offered to contribute to this initiative with tests/demonstration/relevant training of such devices in the commercial shrimp fisheries of the Gulfs.
