THE CURRENT SITUATION, ISSUES AND POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS OF THE FISHERIES IN THE TRNC

Abstract

Since the early ages humans preferred to settle at places with warm climate and clean water supplies. Therefore, both economically and nutritionally, fisheries had a significant impact on human lives. As an island, fisheries have an important role on the civilizations founded on Cyprus Island. Fisheries have also been a significant portion of financial proceedings for Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), which is one of the two countries established on the Cyprus Island (9.251 km²) that is located at the eastern part of the Mediterranean Basin and is the biggest island of this region. The resources of countries that are founded on islands are typically limited, therefore for the most efficient usage of the existing resources fisheries are coming forward as an economic activity in TRNC. Additionally, wars and political disagreements in the history caused difficulties in fisheries as well as many other sectors. In this study we examined the fisheries of TRNC, which borders the half of the coastal region (50.6%) of the island, since its establishment and we proposed possible resolutions for existing problems. We collected data from the officials and individuals that are working in fisheries in order to address the issues of this sector and to understand the current situation of fisheries. Unfortunately, our literature surveys revealed a huge lack of scientific studies on this sector. For better understanding of the current sea food potential and its production; we compared our data with South Cyprus. We are encouraged by the lack of a comprehensive study on the fisheries of the TRNC and we hope that our study will help us on the improvements and policies of the fisheries in our country.

Keywords

• Fisheries
• Water Products
• Aquaculture
• Agricultural Geography
• TRNC