Dr Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohammed Al Qasimi.

His Highness Dr Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, approved the establishment of a fish farm in Khorfakkan.

The first of its kind in the country because the existing farms are purely commercial, the fish farm will be close to the University of Khorfakkan and its research centre and will provide practical training for the students of the University of Khorfakkan’s College of Marine Sciences and Aquatic Biology, which is a graduation requirement and takes three months. 

This was announced by Ali Abu Ghazin, Chairman of the Sharjah Fish Resources Authority (SFRA), via the Direct Line programme.

The fish farm will support in future the employment of students from the College of Marine Sciences and Aquatic Biology as well as Khorfakkan citizens and will be managed by a company in the first year before it will be managed by the university graduates, he said.

Abu Ghazin revealed that an educational institute for those wishing to start a fish farming project was being considered and that theoretical and subsequently practical training courses were being organized through fish farming in Khorfakkan.

Sheikh Sultan instructed the SFRA to provide a plot of land for building the ponds in and get familiar with how to market fish in the local and overseas markets, he said, noting that a memorandum of understanding was signed with the University of Khorfakkan and work was underway to implement its provisions.