Muscat – Oman has taken a major step to strengthen its food security and expand non-oil revenues with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources signing four aquaculture investment agreements worth more than RO51mn.

Signed on Monday by H E Dr Saud bin Hamoud Al Habsi, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources, with chief executives of the implementing firms, the agreements cover projects in South Sharqiyah, Al Wusta and Muscat.

In South Sharqiyah, two large-scale shrimp farming projects will anchor the investment drive. The first, valued at RO20mn, will have an annual production capacity of 5,000 tonnes. The second project, with an investment of RO21.3mn, is set to produce 6,000 tonnes of shrimp annually – significantly boosting domestic seafood output and export potential.

Al Wusta will host a RO6mn shrimp farm with an expected annual yield of 2,000 tonnes, further consolidating the governorate’s growing role as a fisheries and aquaculture hub.

Meanwhile, Muscat will see the launch of a finfish farming project in Quriyat, with an investment exceeding RO3.8mn. The facility will produce up to 2,000 tonnes of European cobia annually, marking a strategic diversification into high-value fish species.

Dr Abdul Aziz bin Saeed Al Marzouqi, Director General of Fisheries Resources Development, said the projects reflect the ministry’s continued push to attract quality investments into aquaculture. He added that the initiatives are aligned with national priorities to enhance food security, diversify income streams and reinforce the contribution of non-oil sectors to the economy.

The agreements underline Oman’s ambition to position aquaculture as a key pillar of sustainable growth, leveraging its extensive coastline and marine resources to meet rising domestic demand while expanding export capacity.