UNIDO and Japan continue to support a sustainable tuna fish value chain in Iran

The Government of Japan and UNIDO have signed a funding agreement for a project to promote the sustainable development of the tuna value chain in the Chabahar region of Iran.

Building on a series of earlier interventions under the Japanese Supplementary Budget Programme, to build the capacity of the tuna value chain in Chabahar, the initiative will support the ability of local fishermen to access new markets while at the same time reduce the risk of over-fishing. Currently, although tuna caught in the Chabahar region is of high quality, most of it is canned and sold at low prices. Fishermen are catching tuna using methods and at volumes that, if continued, will likely deplete marine resources in the south-east coastal region. 

Through a collaborative approach with the Ministry of Agriculture, the Iranian Fisheries Organization and local institutions, UNIDO will provide technical assistance to improve the quality management system, encourage the promotion of exports at higher prices, promote sustainable fishing practices and establish a mechanism to monitor and control the stock of yellowfin tuna.

Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises in the fishery sector in Chabahar will directly benefit from these quality and market-related interventions, particularly from Japanese knowledge sharing and technology transfers.

Highlights of earlier interventions can be viewed here. 

For further information contact Tomoyoshi Koume (T.Koume [at] unido.org (T[dot]Koume[at]unido[dot]org))