22 C.\RIUB. MAIL STUll .• Si'ECI,\L EDITION. 2007 exceptions arc the industrial shrimp and luna lisherics on the northern coast of South America and on the continental shelf adjacent lo the Central American countries. The lishing sector is dominated by small, artisanal boats constructed or tibreglass ami wood. These may be powered by outboard engines, oars, or sails, or a combination of all three. There arc approximately 25,000 nrtisanal boats, 5,000 medium-sized boats, and 1,500 industrial vessels in the region.'" Hook and lines, gillnets, and traps nrc the main types of gear used. In addition, trawls arc common in the shrimp lisheries or South and Central America. Diving using compressed air is common in the lobster and conch lishcrics. The main lishcries targeted in the region arc based on the following resources: coral reels and fish; deepwater snappers and groupers; large pelagic lish;" small coastal pelagic fish; flyinglish; groundtish; shrimp; lobster and conch. The fish resources of the Wider Caribbean region arc extremely diverse. ll has been estimated that there arc some 680 species of bony fish and about 49 species of sharks targeted by fisheries in the region (Cervigon 1993 ). The invertebrates including shrimp, lobsters, and molluscs (conch, octopus, and squid) must bl! added to these ligures to detennine the total number of species that arc of interest to fisheries. This diversity presents a major challenge to the effective management of fish stocks in the Caribbean. There is lillie inronnalion on the status of most of the commercially important resources, and even less on the hundreds of species of lesser importance to the region's fisheries. For example, of the 197 stocks li.11ling under the jurisdiction ofthc Caribbean Fisheries Management Council (CFMC), covering the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. the status of 175 (88'!1,,) was unknown or undellncd. Since the 1980s, aquaculture has been making an increasingly significant contribution to the cconomil!s of the region. The main species farmed arc tilapia and pcnncid sluimp (Haughton and Jacobs 1998). the region is approximately 15 kg pt::r year. It is more variable in Central and South Aml!rica, where the average is approximately 10 kg, and highest in the island stales where the average per capita consumption is 19 kg, well above the world-wide average (F/\0 Dntabase). 21 Consumption in several of the Small Island Dt::vdoping Stales (SIDS) is higher than local production and has to be satisfied by high levels of imports. The high diversity of specit::s of diflcn:nt shapes and sizt::s, the variation in taste and texture, and broad range in the commercial value of lisb m<::nn that fish is generally available al aflordablc prices to both rich and poor throughout the year. 4.1.1.1 Imports U/1(/ Exports Fisheries make a signilicanl positive contribution to the balance of trade of the Caribbean region, even though the quantity of imports by weight considerably exceeds that of' exports. According to statistics from the UN FAO, approximately 360,000 lonnes or lish and fishery products, worth some U.S. S410 million, were imported in 2000, while exports amounted to around 200,000 tonncs, worth U.S. $1.2 billion. This apparent anomaly is due to the fact that exports arc dominated by high-value products such as shrimp, spiny lobster, tuna, snappers and groupers, and queen conch, which command premium prices on the inlcrnnlionul market. The U.S.A. is the major destination of most exports from tbc Caribbean, which have been growing steadily in value. Imports arc very high in the island stales, where they account lor most fish supplied lor human consumption. Haiti, for example, imports 70% or its !ish, Jamaica 78%,, and Martinique 80 per cent. The composition of imports in the small island stales is dominated by dried, salted, and smoked lish. Fresh, chilled, and frozen products nrc also imported, mainly by the countries with a tourism industry. 4.1.1.3 Employme11t 4.1.1.1 Per Capita Consumption t!f'Fish Fisheries play a very important role in providing nutrition and food security within the Caribbean region. Fish is a vital source of animal protein and minerals in the diet of Caribbean people, particularly the poor and vulnerable members of society. Per capita consumption or fish in Perhaps one of the most important roles of lishcrics is the employment which the sector provides for hundreds of thousands or people, in a region where high levels of unemployment and under-employment continue to be a major conccm. In a 1998 survey or 17 Caribbean countries, approximately 65'Yo or respondents reported that they were either "conccmed" or "very concerned" about losing their job in the next 12 months (Constance 1998). Information. Data. ami Swti!ilics Unit (FIDI), FAO I99K. fish urc those species spl'mling most of their lh'c.."i in thl.! uppcr\\:atcr column, i.l!., relatively close to the surface. as opposed to those finding sustcnam:c dusc sc;1bed (demersal). -40- I 1\\'W\\'. rau.urg/Jocrcp/TS3 65 E/tS3 65c04. hun# I