The economics of fish farming

Abstract

Malta and Gozo, are surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea which can be seen from every corner of the islands. The surface area of territorial waters is greater than that of land, and this has lately been extended further. It is to be assumed that the sea is greatly exploited. But in fact it is not so. In this chapter, it will be shown that the sea is not profitably exploited by Maltese fishermen. Although Malta is an island the Maltese are not traditionally good fishermen. Long before the Knights of St. John came to rule Malta, and even during their sojourn, Malta and Gozo were frequently the victim of pirates, whose invasions forced the Maltese to move away from the shores, which were not well protected. Most of the inhabitants came to live in the centre of the island near fortifications, where they could find shelter during such invasions. They, therefore, tended to earn a living as farmers. When the British ruled Malta, the fishing industry began to increase gradually but once again there were other obstacles, as for example preventing certain areas from being used for fishing because of their military use. A typical example is the area around Filfla. Thus, these continued to hinder the fishermen, by restricting the potential fishing areas, and by killing fish as a result of explosions. To add more to this, the last World War continued to disrupt the fishing industry, because people were enrolled as soldiers, and also the incessant bombing continued destroying the species of fish, which surrounded the islands.