Tehran - Iran’s fisheries sector is becoming a key pillar of food security and foreign exchange earnings, backed by rising production and strong private investment, according to a senior agriculture official.

 

Speaking at a meeting at the Ministry of Agriculture, Hamzeh Rostampour, Head of the Iran Fisheries Organization, said fisheries development in arid, saline, and less-developed regions can generate significant export revenues.

 

Citing FAO projections that aquatic products will supply much of the world’s protein needs by 2050, he highlighted the Makran coast and Iran’s sea-based development strategy as major opportunities.

 

Rostampour said the sector operates 20,500 licensed vessels, employs about one million people, and generates roughly $700 million in foreign exchange annually.

 

He noted that aquaculture output has risen from 32,000 tons in the early post-revolution years to over 1.5 million tons, calling fisheries a form of strategic “passive defense” through coastal presence and border-area production.