The inland fisheries of the Russian Federation: their current status for food provision and employment

The Russian Federation is the largest country in the world occupying one-third of Eurasia and it has enormous water resources. [Author] Fish from inland waters has always been a central part of the Russian diet and a major contributor to national food security. [Author] Inland fisheries are highly diversified and provide employment to 40 500 fishers in industrial fisheries. [Author] In addition an estimated 2. [Author]4 million amateur and recreational fishers and around 150 000 Indigenous Peoples fish for subsistence and small-scale trade. [Author] Historic production figures surpassed 500 000 tonnes of fish from Russian inland fisheries, but have declined over the last 40 years, and current official catches are around 270 000 tonnes. [Author] However, unrecorded catches by recreational/amateur fishers add up to an estimated 100 000 tonnes annually, and subsistence catches by Indigenous Peoples probably add another 67 000 tonnes; and finally, illegal catches may add another 50 000 tonnes, suggesting that total landings are not far from what was caught in the past. [Author] The Russian Federation has invested significant resources and efforts into developing and managing inland fisheries and aquaculture. [Author] The review presents the current management structure and summarizes the comprehensive legislation governing inland fisheries, including the agreements with neighbouring countries sharing some of the major waterbodies or rivers. [Author]