Eurocean

Portugal has a coastline of 1.187 km.
Portugal has one of the largest Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ) in Europe with 1.700.000² km in no small part due to the archipelagos of Madeira and Azores.
76% of the Portuguese population lives in coastal areas.

Maritime Activities

The most important maritime activity in Portugal is the coastal tourism. 90% of the tourists are attracted by the coast.Tourism represents 11% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 10% of total employment.
Portugal has the 4th largest fishing fleet in EU with 8700 vessels which amount to 106.800 GT, the 6th largest in EU.
The fisheries products, including aquaculture amount to 220.000 tonnes per year.
Portugal has the highest per capita consumption of fisheries products in the EU (56.5kg per head per year).

Employment in maritime activities

Maritime activity	Jobs
Coastal Tourism and recreation	38 894
Fisheries a)	33 743
Maritime Transport	3 206
Navy	14 745
Recreational boating	2 480
Seaports and related services	2 002
Shipbuilding	4 336
a) Data comprise employment in fishing, fish processing and aquaculture

Further Information

Source: EU Maritime Policy: Facts and Figures - Portugal, 2008. [To consult the full document]

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