Mark DIMECH

Dr. Mark Dimech, obtained his Ph.D. in Ocean Sciences, at the University of Wales, Bangor, U.K. He has 25 years’ experience in Fisheries data collection, stock assessment and Fisheries Management. In the past, he has worked as a researcher, supervisor, and occasional lecturer at the University of Malta. For 5 years he worked as a Senior Fisheries Resources Manager with the Maltese Ministry responsible for Fisheries where he has worked extensively within the framework of the European Commission fisheries monitoring and research activities as well as that of the FAO General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (FAO-GFCM), and the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT). During this period he has served regularly as an expert at the European Scientific and Technical, Economic Committee for Fisheries (STECF) acting as Chairperson for several EU Fisheries Working Groups, including those of the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) and was a focal point for several EU-funded research projects. Within the framework of the STECF and the FAO-GFCM, he has conducted several stock assessments and stock assessment-related studies. From 2010 until 2019 he worked with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), with the Fisheries and

Aquaculture Department as a Fisheries officer where he has participated in several FAO Projects in Europe, North Africa, the Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa on Fisheries data collection, Stock assessment and Fisheries Management. With FAO he has worked in these specific countries: Bahrain, Egypt, Eritrea, Palestine, Ivory Coast, Lebanon, Oman, Syria, Turkey, Tunisia, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates. During these projects, he has supported countries in developing Fisheries Management Plans according to the FAO Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management (EAFM). From 2019 to late 2021 he worked as an independent fisheries consultant for a variety of entities including Universities, NGOs, Governments, International Organizations and Private Companies. As from December 2021 I have joined the National Transformation Institute at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia as a Marine Director. I am responsible for running the Marine Environment and Fisheries projects as a direct support to the GIGA projects and the Directorate General of Fisheries Resources within the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The Projects deal with environmental surveys including Coral Reefs, Seagrass habitats, deep sea habitats and Fisheries data collection, stock assessment and management.