Fishing is a small economic sector, which accounted for around 0.6 percent of GDP in FY 1992. Nevertheless, fishing had increased sharply in the 1970s and 1980s and seemed wellpositioned for further expansion in the 1990s. The fish catch was 173,000 tons in FY 1970, approximately 301,000 tons in FY 1982, and 510,000 tons in FY 1992. The bulk of the catch was taken offshore in the Arabian Sea. Much of the catch, especially prawns and shrimp, is exported to the Middle East. Fish accounted for 1.7 percent of export earnings in FY 1992. The country is considered to have a large potential in fishing, reportedly as high as 14 million tons a year if sufficient investments and market expansion occur.

Data as of April 1994