The Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf are among the most important marine environments in the Middle East. Their fisheries support food security, employment, household incomes, coastal communities, and local economies. Fish and other marine resources also contribute to cultural traditions and provide an important foundation for the region’s emerging blue economy.
Yet the future of these fisheries is increasingly influenced by a combination of pressures. Fishing intensity, habitat degradation, illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, coastal development, climate-related environmental changes, and weaknesses in fisheries monitoring are affecting the ability of marine ecosystems to maintain their productivity.
The Red Sea and Arabian Gulf are often discussed together because of their geographical proximity and shared socioeconomic importance. Ecologically, however, they are very different systems. These differences have important implications for fisheries production, vulnerability to overexploitation, and the type of management required.
A comparative assessment of the two regions shows that sustainable fisheries management cannot rely on a single model. Management approaches need to reflect ecological characteristics, fishing practices, socioeconomic dependence, and institutional capacity in each marine system (Mishra & Ahmed, 2026).
Two Seas, Two Fisheries Realities
The Red Sea is a long, relatively narrow and semi-enclosed sea characterized by extensive coral reefs and diverse coastal habitats. Coral reefs, mangroves and seagrass ecosystems provide feeding, nursery and shelter areas for numerous marine organisms. This complex habitat structure supports diverse fish communities and predominantly artisanal, multispecies fisheries.
The fisheries of the Red Sea include groupers, snappers, emperors, sardines, shrimp and many other species. Small-scale fishers commonly use handlines, gillnets, traps and other relatively simple fishing gears. Because fishing is distributed among many species and habitats, the high biodiversity of the Red Sea can provide a degree of ecological buffering. However, this does not mean that individual species are protected from excessive fishing pressure.
Large, slow-growing and late-maturing species are particularly vulnerable to sustained exploitation. Groupers, snappers and emperors, for example, can be affected disproportionately when fishing effort becomes concentrated on high-value species (Ahmed & Ali, 2013, 2015; Kattan et al., 2017).
The Arabian Gulf presents a different ecological and fisheries context. It is shallow, semi-enclosed and characterized by extreme environmental conditions, including high temperatures, hypersalinity and strong seasonal variability. Its marine ecosystems are also exposed to intensive coastal development, maritime activities, industrialization and hydrocarbon-related activities.
Compared with the Red Sea, fisheries in the Arabian Gulf are more concentrated on a relatively narrower group of commercially important species, including demersal fishes and shrimp. Mechanized fishing and greater fishing efficiency can increase the capacity of fleets to remove fish from the ecosystem, particularly when fishing effort exceeds the productive capacity of stocks (Grandcourt, 2012; Roa et al., 2019).
These differences are important. A highly diverse multispecies system and a less diverse system dominated by fewer commercial species may respond differently to increasing fishing pressure and environmental change.
When More Fishing Does Not Mean More Fish
One of the most important indicators of fisheries health is catch per unit effort (CPUE). In simple terms, CPUE describes how much fish is caught relative to the amount of fishing effort required.
When fishers must spend more time, use more gear, travel farther, or employ more powerful vessels to obtain the same amount of fish, declining CPUE can provide an important warning that fish availability is decreasing.
Evidence from both the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf indicates widespread concerns about full exploitation and overexploitation of fisheries resources. Studies of Red Sea fisheries have reported declining availability of several commercially important reef-associated species, while assessments of Egyptian Red Sea fisheries have identified exploitation rates exceeding levels considered sustainable for many commercially important species (Al Solami, 2020; Mehanna & Samy Kamal, 2024).
Market-based assessments have also identified signs of potential overexploitation in Red Sea reef fisheries, particularly among high-value species (Shellem et al., 2021). Research along the Sudanese Red Sea coast has demonstrated considerable fish diversity, but diversity alone cannot prevent the depletion of heavily targeted species (Olsen et al., 2021).
The situation in the Arabian Gulf is also concerning. Fisheries have experienced prolonged exploitation, while environmental conditions and coastal modification can add additional stress to already heavily utilized resources (Grandcourt, 2012; Roa et al., 2019).
The lesson is straightforward: increasing fishing effort does not necessarily increase long-term production. When fishing pressure becomes excessive, catches may initially remain high because fishers increase effort and efficiency. Over time, however, declining biomass can result in lower CPUE, reduced economic returns and greater pressure on remaining stocks.
The Hidden Pressure: IUU Fishing
Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing is one of the most difficult challenges facing sustainable fisheries management.
IUU fishing is not simply a problem of illegal vessels. It can include fishing without authorization, harvesting prohibited species or sizes, fishing in closed areas or seasons, exceeding allowable effort, and failing to report catches accurately.
The problem is closely connected to socioeconomic conditions.
Where coastal communities depend heavily on fishing and alternative sources of income are limited, declining catches can create a difficult cycle. Fishers may respond to lower catches by increasing fishing effort. If legal opportunities become insufficient to maintain household income, the incentive to fish outside established regulations can increase.
This can create a reinforcing cycle:
Increasing fishing effort → declining fish biomass → lower CPUE → economic pressure → greater incentives for IUU fishing → further stock depletion.
Breaking this cycle requires more than patrols and penalties. Effective fisheries governance must also address the socioeconomic conditions that influence fishing behavior.
IUU fishing is particularly difficult to control in a region characterized by extensive coastlines, numerous fishing grounds and transboundary marine resources. In parts of the Red Sea, limitations in surveillance infrastructure, vessel monitoring and enforcement capacity can make it difficult to detect unauthorized activities.
The Arabian Gulf has relatively stronger centralized management structures in many areas, but intensive fishing, fleet capacity, transboundary movements and multiple maritime activities continue to create management challenges.
Regional cooperation is therefore essential. Initiatives under the Regional Organization for the Conservation of the Environment of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden (PERSGA), including work under the Sustainable Fishery Development in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden (SFISH) project, emphasize stronger regional approaches to IUU fishing and fisheries management (PERSGA, 2024, 2025).
Fishing Down the Food Web
Another important ecological signal is the gradual change in the composition of catches.
When large predatory fish become less abundant, fisheries may increasingly depend on smaller, faster-growing species. This phenomenon is commonly associated with “fishing down the food web.”
Large groupers, snappers and emperors occupy relatively high trophic positions and often have biological characteristics that make them more vulnerable to intensive exploitation. Their removal can alter food-web structure and reduce the ecological complexity of marine communities.
Over time, a fishery may therefore continue producing fish while the composition of the catch changes. A decline in large predators accompanied by an increasing contribution from smaller and lower-trophic-level species can indicate a gradual simplification of the ecosystem.
This distinction is important because maintaining the quantity of landings alone does not necessarily mean that the ecosystem remains healthy.
A sustainable fishery should maintain not only production but also species diversity, trophic structure, reproductive capacity and habitat integrity.
Healthy Fisheries Need Healthy Ecosystems
Fish stocks cannot be managed independently of the ecosystems that support them.
In the Red Sea, coral reefs are particularly important because they provide structurally complex habitats for numerous fish and invertebrate species. Mangroves and seagrass ecosystems also provide nursery and feeding habitats and contribute to wider coastal ecosystem functioning.
The condition of coral reefs is therefore directly relevant to fisheries sustainability. Coral reef degradation can reduce habitat complexity and affect the abundance and distribution of reef-associated species (Fine et al., 2019).
The Arabian Gulf faces a different combination of environmental pressures. Extreme temperature and salinity conditions already impose physiological constraints on marine organisms. Additional pressures from coastal development, habitat modification and intensive human activity can reduce ecological resilience.
Climate change adds another layer of uncertainty. Changes in sea temperature, sea-level conditions and other environmental variables can influence species distribution, recruitment and habitat productivity. Fisheries management must therefore become increasingly adaptive rather than relying exclusively on historical patterns.
Protecting fisheries consequently means protecting coral reefs, mangroves, seagrass beds, nursery grounds and other critical habitats.
Why One Management Approach Cannot Fit Both Seas
The ecological and fisheries differences between the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf mean that management priorities should not be identical.
In the Red Sea, fisheries management needs to pay particular attention to multispecies exploitation, high-value reef predators, artisanal fishing communities and the protection of complex coastal habitats. Improved catch and effort monitoring is essential, particularly in areas where fisheries data remain limited.
In the Arabian Gulf, management needs to give greater attention to fleet capacity, fishing efficiency, concentration on commercially valuable species, shrimp fisheries, habitat impacts and cumulative environmental pressures.
Both regions, however, share several fundamental needs:
- Better fisheries statistics and standardized long-term monitoring.
- Stronger monitoring, control and surveillance systems.
- Improved reporting of fishing effort and catches.
- Protection of spawning and nursery habitats.
- Effective spatial and seasonal management measures.
- Greater regional cooperation for transboundary fisheries.
- Stronger participation of local fishing communities.
- Measures addressing the socioeconomic causes of IUU fishing.
From Fisheries Management to Ecosystem-Based Management
Traditional fisheries management often focuses on individual species, catch limits or fishing seasons. These tools remain important, but they are not sufficient when fisheries interact with complex ecosystems and multiple human pressures.
Ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM) provides a broader framework.
Rather than asking only, “How many fish can we catch?”, ecosystem-based management asks:
- Which species are being removed?
- What habitats support them?
- How does fishing affect predators, prey and food webs?
- How are climate and habitat changes affecting productivity?
- How dependent are local communities on the fishery?
- What management measures are realistic and enforceable?
This approach is particularly relevant to the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf because both systems are exposed to multiple interacting pressures.
Management should also recognize the role of local fishers. Co-management arrangements, community participation and improved communication between authorities and fishing communities can strengthen compliance and make management measures more realistic.
Where fleet capacity is excessive, carefully designed capacity-reduction programs, including gear or vessel buy-back mechanisms where appropriate, may also be considered. At the same time, alternative livelihood opportunities can reduce dependence on increasingly stressed fish stocks.
Aquaculture, responsible marine tourism, coastal enterprises and other components of the blue economy may provide complementary sources of income when developed with appropriate environmental safeguards.
What Can Be Done?
Sustainable fisheries require action at several levels.
1. Improve monitoring and data
Reliable fisheries management depends on reliable information. Catch, effort, species composition, fishing gear and spatial data should be collected consistently and integrated across national and regional systems.
2. Strengthen action against IUU fishing
Vessel registration, licensing, monitoring systems, port controls, catch documentation and effective enforcement can reduce opportunities for illegal and unreported fishing. Regional cooperation is especially important for shared marine resources.
3. Protect critical habitats
Coral reefs, mangroves, seagrass beds, spawning areas and nursery grounds should be incorporated into fisheries management and marine spatial planning.
4. Protect vulnerable species and trophic structure
Management should not focus solely on total catch. Large predators and other vulnerable species require appropriate protection to maintain ecological functions and reproductive capacity.
5. Involve fishing communities
Fishers possess valuable local knowledge and are directly affected by fisheries regulations. Their participation can improve both the design and implementation of management measures.
6. Develop complementary livelihoods
Where fishing pressure is driven by economic dependence, sustainable alternatives can help reduce incentives for illegal fishing. Such alternatives should be designed according to local ecological and socioeconomic conditions.
7. Strengthen regional cooperation
The Red Sea and Arabian Gulf cross national boundaries. Effective fisheries management therefore requires cooperation among neighboring countries, shared data, compatible monitoring systems and coordinated responses to IUU fishing.
Looking Ahead
The future of fisheries in the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf will depend on whether societies treat fisheries as renewable ecological systems rather than simply sources of fish.
A fishery can remain economically important only when the ecosystem supporting it remains productive. Increasing fishing effort while stocks decline may provide short-term catches, but it can undermine the ecological and economic foundation of the fishery itself.
The challenge is therefore not simply to catch more fish. It is to maintain marine ecosystems capable of producing fish for future generations.
The Red Sea and Arabian Gulf require management approaches that combine fisheries science, ecosystem conservation, effective governance and socioeconomic development. Protecting marine habitats, improving monitoring, reducing IUU fishing, maintaining trophic diversity and involving local communities are interconnected components of the same sustainability challenge.
The future of fisheries is not determined by how much fish we catch today, but by whether marine ecosystems can continue producing fish tomorrow.
References
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