Expert explains how aquaculture development can contribute to food security

PESHAWAR: The people of Pakistan require food security, jobs and other sources of income generation and best available alternative to quality food production is aquaculture.

Aquaculture may be marine, brackish or fresh water and we have tremendous opportunity to harness this resource of for both local consumption and export. However, for this purpose new innovative interventions are required at local level for each district throughout the country.

Talking to this scribe, an expert on aquaculture said that this is only possible through clubbing practicing experts on the subject in specific fields to devise an action plan for the development of the sub-sector of agriculture.

The action plan should be cost effective through robust short training programmes to existing employees of Fisheries Department and Provincial Fisheries Departments duly coordinated at the local level. Private Sector is the engine of growth which needs technical support to align to the new requirements of regulation and production of fish for local market and for export.

The new jobs and source of income generation should be arena of private sector. The private sector should shift its focus from traditional fish farming to knowledge-based fish farming on business model.

The expert said that the Government of Pakistan has taken a positive initiative to provide Access to Finance to Fish Farmers (Aqua-farms) in the country. The staff of commercial banks’ branches is being mobilized to provide different financial products to the fish farmers in remote areas of the country.

However, this facility could only be availed by those whole have collateral as security to provide for load to the banks and those aqua culturists who have no holding are raising fish on rented land or rented farms have got no collateral security to offer to the banks and are unable to obtain load for required inputs such fish seed, fertilizer and fish feed for increasing production of fish and are mostly subsistence level fish farmers. They need finance or grant to optimize their annual fish production.

The recent flood has damaged their fish crop and they are unable to start the production cycle of fish again due to unavailability of financial resources due to poverty. The federal government or the provincial government should provide them fish seed free of cost as grant to them so as to enable them to start the

fish production cycle on subsistence level for

their livelihood and food security.

They only require meager amount for purchase of input of lime and inorganic fertilizer in small quantity. This can be done Federal Rural Support Program or Provincial Rural Support Program in the Provinces. This will alleviate poverty-stricken segment of society in the rural area by reviving their livelihood and source of income.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024