Research ship to help build Moroccan foundation for use of sea resources

Morocco will get by March 31, 2001 a $11-million research ship built in Japanese shipyards to upgrade scientific research and secure the autonomy of works conducted on pelagics in Moroccan waters.

Fishery Minister Thami Khyari, who signed the agreement Wednesday with the Japanese ambassador to Morocco, said the project financed by Tokyo will be one of the cores of the Casablanca National Halieutic Research Institute.

The ship with room for 21 and a 24-day autonomy will be useful for sea-outings and on-site exploration and assessment of fish stocks and reliable monitoring of halieutic potentials in the Moroccan Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

For the Minister, Morocco could not continue to depend on foreign partners' goodwill for its pelagic research program when the species are of key importance in terms of volume and jobs. Pelagics require more care because stocks are being depleted by overfishing and adverse evolution of the ecosystem, he said.