Ministry panel launches first private fish farming project

Theministerial committee on the stimulation and engagement of the privatesector in the country’s economic development projects, which is chairedby HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Abdullah binNasser bin Khalifa al-Thani, announced the launch of the first privatesector fish farming project with a capacity of 2,000 tonnes per year.Theproject is the first of a series of similar projects in differentsectors that the country is planning to launch in implementation of thedirectives of His Highness the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani andin accordance with the recommendations of the technical committee of theministerial group. The project also is part of the government’s effortsto reach self-sufficiency in food and agricultural, livestock andindustrial products.HE Sheikh Dr Faleh bin Nasser al-Thani,assistant undersecretary for agriculture and fisheries affairs at theMinistry of Municipality and Environment, said that a national companywas selected to manage the fish farming project after winning a tenderthat a group of investors applied for.  The company was also grantedland to serve the logistics associated with the project. The companywill produce 2,000 tonnes of local fish annually.“Theself-sufficiency rate in fish is planned to increase after thecompletion of the three fish farming projects, which will produce 6,000tonnes entirely for the local market,” said Sheikh Dr Faleh.He addedthat the fish farming projects are set to include a separate projectfor shrimp production, the first of its kind in Qatar, noting that thetechnical committee of the ministerial group is about to make theseprojects available for the private sector in the near future. QNA