Kuwait is moving to expand fish farming projects through stronger public-private sector partnerships as part of efforts to increase local production and strengthen food security, Dr. Amani Al-Yaqout, head of the fish farming project at the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research, said.
Al-Yaqout said five government entities are supporting the initiative: the General Secretariat of the Supreme Council for Planning and Development, the National Fund for Small and Medium Enterprises Development, the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences, the Public Authority for Agricultural Affairs and Fish Resources, and the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research.
She said the Public Authority for Agricultural Affairs and Fish Resources is responsible for allocating land to investors to establish fish farms and monitoring production, while KISR provides applied research, modern technologies and scientific information, in addition to producing and supplying juvenile fish to investors.
Al-Yaqout said juvenile sheem fish are now available locally, while the institute is working to make juvenile Australian seabass available in the coming period. This, she said, would help investors expand production and increase the sector’s contribution to food security.
She noted that strengthening domestic fish production has become increasingly important amid potential disruptions caused by wars, natural disasters, climate change and water scarcity.
Two farms emerge as success stories
Al-Yaqout identified two private farms, one in Al-Wafra and another in Al-Abdali, as leading local success stories. The farms benefited from research and technologies provided by KISR and have succeeded in producing significant quantities of farmed fish for the local market.
She said the experience demonstrates the potential of cooperation between the public and private sectors to develop Kuwait’s aquaculture industry. Fish farming has also proven successful in countries including Indonesia, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, she said, adding that expanding the sector is consistent with Kuwait’s development objectives of diversifying income sources and reducing dependence on oil.
Al-Yaqout said local farms now have trained personnel and advanced operating systems, providing a foundation for further expansion and higher production. She added that the state had previously allocated about 10 percent of farm areas for fish farming projects, but there is now a trend toward increasing the areas designated for the activity.
Expanding these areas would help raise production capacity, she said, stressing that future growth would rely on national expertise and closer cooperation among government agencies.
The expansion of fish farming is ultimately aimed at increasing local production, strengthening self-sufficiency and improving Kuwait’s ability to withstand regional and global challenges affecting food supplies.
