Photo credit: Tim Huntington (UK – Poseidon)
Review: Abdel Rahman El Gamal (Founder of the website)
The traditional fishing boats in Yemen are “houri” and “sambuks”. The inserted photo shows the construction of sambuks. Wooden vessels including sambuks are being built and repaired at private boatyards while cooperative workshops are used mainly for small repairs and maintenance. The growing scarcity and cost of timber traditionally used for boat building and repair may rationalize the attempts to use alternative materials. However, careful cooperation with fishermen is essential.
Sambuks are boats of 10–21 m in length powered by inboard diesel engines of 22–165 hp. Depending on the crew members range from 8-15 fishermen. Fishermen operating sambuks remain at sea for four to six days.
Various types of traditional fishing gears are used on sambuks including gillnet, hook and line and trawl nets whereas gillnets are mainly used for catching king fish and Indian mackerel. Hook and line is used to catch king fish, groupers, emperors and carangids while shrimp is the target of trawling operations.
It may worth mentioning to the fisheries loan program in Yemen that finances fishing boat construction and repairs, engines, and nets.
