The Regional Consultation on Preparation of a Management Plan for Shark Fisheries (RC-SF) was held in Beruwala, Sri Lanka, on 24-26 March 2008. Fifteen delegates representing India, Maldives and Sri Lanka took part. Mr G Piyasena, Secretary, Ministry of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (MoFAR), Government of Sri Lanka, chaired the meeting

The meeting heard and discussed technical presentations on the status of shark fisheries in the three countries, and agreed on the following set of activities: Comprehensive status paper on shark fisheries resources

• Stakeholder consultation on management aspects of shark fisheries in each of the three countries at selected locations.
• Setting up of a data collection, collation and compilation mechanism on shark fisheries, especially species-wise data.
• Setting up of a National Task Force on Shark Fisheries management.
• Setting up of a ‘Shark Portal / Website’ to post all information on the shark fisheries of the Bay of Bengal region.
• Documentation of indigenous traditional knowledge for management of shark fisheries.
• Preparation of ‘awareness material’ on conservation and sustainable exploitation of shark fisheries.