A government push led by the newly constituted fisheries promotion has enabled the Maldives to enter over a dozen new foreign markets for fish exports, fisheries minister Dr Mohamed Shainee said Tuesday.
In an exclusive interview with Avas, Shainee noted that the development of the country's fisheries sector remains a top priority for the government.
The effort has led to the Maldives fishing industry to venture into fourteen new foreign markets, the minister added.
"We've attained 14 new markets last year. The opening up of new markets is one thing. But we have to keep in mind that when we took office Maldives had lost out on Europe's 25-30 percent duty concession. So its a great achievement to enjoy this much success even with such challenges," Shainee explained.
Minister also hailed Maldives' ability to challenge competitors despite being forced to pay over 30 percent more duty as a significant achievement for the small island nation.
"President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom immediately constituted the fisheries promotion board to market our products as soon as we lost the duty concession from Europe. Through that effort we've been able to portray the unique aspects of Maldives' fishing industry," he added.
Shainee also insisted that the role of the fisheries promotion board was not limited to just participating in fisheries fairs.
"We do participate in various fairs. We take a leading role in global conventions on fisheries. We host various stakeholders sit-downs.
