Common Name
Blue Swimming Crab
Scientific Name
Portunus pelagicus
The Sri Lanka blue swimming crab fisheries improvement project (FIP) is a tripartite initiative that brings together small scale fishermen from four districts (Jaffna, Kilinochchi, Mannar and Puttalam), seafood companies (Taprobane Seafood Group Pvt Ltd) and government agencies (Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources and the National Aquatic Resources Agency). The FIP is designed, coordinated, implemented, monitored, and internally evaluated by pelagikos pvt ltd.
The target stocks are blue swimming crab (Portunus pelagicus) populations in the Palk Bay (northern Sri Lanka) and the Gulf of Mannar (northwestern Sri Lanka). The fishing method is bottom-set crab nets (approximately 1 kilometer long and 50 cm high). The fleet of vessels pursuing the stock comprises in the region of 4,500 fibre-reinforced plastic boats with outboard engines, operating from 76 landing centres in the two fisheries. All the vessels are registered and the fishermen have operating licences.
| 29% | 71% |
| 0% |
| Behind | On Track | Complete | Future |
|---|---|---|---|
| 33% | 67% | 0% | 0% |
The FIP’s new immediate objective (Outcome) is to achieve MSC certifciaton for blue swimming crab (BSC) fisheries in the Palk Bay and the Gulf of Mannar, by December 2025.
The FIP’s long-term objective (Future Goal) remains the same, for the blue swimming crab (BSC) fisheries in the Palk Bay and the Gulf of Mannar to operate at a level that is likely to generate the MSY and cause the minimum ecological impact on non-target species, marine habitats and the wider marine ecosystem, by means of a consultative management mechanism involving fishing communities, agents, exporters and the Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources at the local, district and national level in 2029, co-financed by the National Fisheries Institute and an inclusive supply chain mechanism.