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WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
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Sudan
Index
Fisherman with his nets on the Nile in northern Sudan
Courtesy Embassy of the Republic of Sudan, Washington
Port Sudan on the Red Sea, Sudan's major port
Courtesy Embassy of the Republic of Sudan, Washington
Sudan's total production of fish, shellfish, and other
fishing products reached an estimated 24,000 tons per year in
1988, the latest available yearly figures. This compared with
estimates of a potential yearly catch exceeding 100,000 tons. The
principal source of fish was the Nile River system. In central
and northern Sudan, several lakes and reservoirs have been formed
by the damming of the river and its branches: the 180-kilometer
section of Lake Nubia on the main Nile in Sudan and the
reservoirs behind the Roseires and Sennar dams on the Blue Nile,
the Jabal al Awliya Dam on the White Nile, and the Khashm al
Qirbah Dam on the Atbarah tributary of the main Nile. These
bodies of water accounted for about 11,000 tons of fish against a
calculated potential of about 29,000 tons.
Production from Lake Nubia through 1979, the latest figures
available in 1991, was only 500 tons a year, or about one-tenth
of the estimated potential. Inhabitants around the lake, which
had formed gradually in the 1960s, had no previous experience in
fishing, and the first significant commercial exploitation of the
lake's resources had been undertaken by the government's
Fisheries Administration. In 1973 a private company also started
operations. In the mid- and late 1970s, an ice plant and a cold
storage facility were built at Wadi Halfa with assistance from
China. China also furnished thirty-five two-ton fishing vessels,
a number of transport launches, and other fishing equipment.
Cooling plants were constructed at Khartoum and Atbarah to hold
fish that were brought from Wadi Halfa by railroad. Although ice
was used in the shipments, substantial loss occurred, especially
during the hotter months. To what extent fish production from the
lake and availability to consumers were increased by these new
facilities was not known in 1991.
The largest potential source of freshwater fish was southern
Sudan whose extensive river network and flooded areas in As Sudd
were believed able to provide 100,000 to 300,000 tons annually on
a sustained basis. Statistics on actual production were
unavailable in 1991; much was consumed locally, although limited
quantities of dried and salted fish were exported to Zaire where
it was in great demand.
The country's second source of fish, the Red Sea coastal
area, was relatively unexploited until the late 1970s. Annual
production toward the end of the decade amounted to about 500
tons of fish, shellfish (including pearl oysters), and other
marine life. In 1978 the British Ministry of Overseas Development
began a joint project with the government Fisheries
Administration to raise output by making boats, motors, and
equipment available to fishermen. Included was an ice plant built
at Sawakin to furnish local fishermen with ice for their catch.
By 1982 the project was well advanced, and about 2,000 tons of
fish were taken annually. A sustained catch of 5,000 tons might
eventually be possible.
Data as of June 1991
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