Namibia exported seafood worth 4.1 billion Namibian dirhams (20.21 billion rubles) in the first quarter of 2024, boosting revenue by 1.2%, SeafoodSource reported on September 3.
The main buyer of Namibian seafood, with a 29.7% share, was the European Union, particularly Spain. The bulk of exports were frozen hake fillets.
Neighbouring Zambia came in second in the first quarter of 2024 with a share of 16.1%. In third place is the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which bought 14.1% of Namibia’s seafood. The DRC mainly bought horse mackerel.
Namibia’s fishery production fell by 16.7% to 97,077 tonnes. In the first quarter of 2023, the catch was 116,471 tonnes. The reason for the reduction is increased efforts to enforce quotas to protect the country’s marine resources by the country’s Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources.
Tuna catches fell by 95%, from 2,970 tonnes in the first quarter of 2023 to 145 tonnes in the first quarter of 2024. Crab catches fell by 61%, horse mackerel by 21% and monkfish by 22%. Hake catches in Namibia fell less than those of other species: by 4%.
Namibia has reduced seafood imports. At the same time, domestic consumption in the country has increased.
The Namibian Statistics Agency (NSA) reports that Namibia imported seafood worth 155 million Namibian dirhams (764.16 million rubles) in the first quarter of 2024. A year earlier, imports amounted to 168 million Namibian dirhams (828.25 million rubles).
Source: Rossa Primavera
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