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Dubai price cap on fishes in six months Sajila Saseendran / 10 September 2013 Fish sold in Dubai’s fish market in Deira will soon have price caps according to their seasonal availability. The Dubai Fishermen’s Cooperative Association which signed an agreement with the Dubai Municipality on Monday, plans to start displaying the daily price list for each type of fish sold in the market in six months, said the Chairman of the Association Major-General Mohammed Saeed Al Marri. “We will fix the maximum price that traders can ask for and the margin of profit for the parties involved. Customers can try and bargain but the vendors can’t hike the price above what is listed for the day,” he told Khaleej Times after the MoU signing ceremony. The pricing of the fish will keep varying as it will depend on the seasonal availability of the fish stock. “We will not allow anyone to create any artificial scarcity of any type of fish and we will ensure that people and food outlets get seasonal fish at reasonable rates,” said Al Marri. The municipality, which manages the market, had already banned illegal vendors in the market and authorised uniformed and licensed Emiratis to regulate the sale of every day’s catch. Khalid Juma Al Falasy, the general manager of the association, said about 600 tonnes of fish are transported to the market every day with almost 60 per cent of it coming from Oman, Saudi Arabia, India and Pakistan. As per the new agreement, the association will manage and control the brokering and auctioning activities in the market by collaborating with the municipality. The municipality will continue its activities with regards to the general management and supervision of the market, maintaining the cleanliness and inspections on fish. The new agreement also seeks to enhance the process of Emiratisation in the market as well as to apply a mechanism to ensure transparency and accuracy in the dealings. “Our aim is to organise the entire activities (of the market) and put it in to a system which enhances the fair (handling) of things. Emiratisation doesn’t mean that other nationalities are out of the circle; all are welcome but through proper channels and system.” Assistant Director-General of the Dubai Municipality Obeid Al-Shamsy said: “We would like to support those who are basically in the profession of fishing and encourage them to continue the same with confidence and zeal.” With the new move, officials said, all kind of information related to the fish items, price and rules and regulations will be clear and available for everybody in a transparent way. The association will have special area for broker activities as well as an office to carry out administrative and accounting activities. It will submit quarterly report to the municipality including details related to the fish stock reaching the market, quantity of imported and exported stuff, daily price rates and the figures of vehicles coming from other countries to transport fish. sajila@khaleejtimes.com Taylor Scott International
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