Combating illegal shark trade

Seventy million sharks are being hunted every year around the world, resulting in a marked decline in their number, according to IFAW.

As shark fishing is a very popular activity around the world, the practice endangers survival of the species.

Sulaiman bin Nasser al Akhzami, Director-general of Nature Conservation, MOECA, said the Sultanate’s wildlife has been receiving special attention from His Majesty Sultan Qaboos and his government.

He asserted that the “establishment of natural reserves and issuance of the law of nature reserves and conservation of wildlife as per Royal Decree No 6/2003 translates the country’s interest into wildlife’s protection.

“We all have a responsibility to ensure that land and marine biological resources are used sustainably for the benefit of present and future generations”.

Megan O’toole from PEW Charitable Trusts Foundation, indicated that the importance of conserving marine species, especially sharks, should not be limited to conserving a food resource for coastal communities, but to preserve the ecological value of species that play an important role in the ecological balance.

“The tourism value of these species is far more valuable than that as a delicacy,” she said. The workshop comes at a time when the number of sharks has declined sharply in recent years because of the trade in shark fin, which is used to make a kind of soup.

It aims to provide participants with information on procedures needed at the border crossings to verify the validity of CITES certificates and acknowledge them with local legislations and agreements on sharks.