Punjab and Sindh provinces have big potential of carps, tilapia and catfish culture while Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has tremendous potential of high value trout fish. This was stated by Omar Hayat, an expert on fisheries sector while talking to this scribe here Sunday.
There are approximately 13000 fish farms in all provinces. Although the fish farming through culture in ponds and other natural water bodies has been practiced for several decades, it is only during the last two decades that any impetus for further development can be seen with about 60470ha of freshwater ponds being used for fish culture. He said that achieving food and nutritional security for its population has remained one of the core underlying objectives of all the policies, programmes and strategies of Pakistan since its independence. Under 18th constitutional amendment, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MINFA) functions were devolved to provinces on 30th June 2011.
During the year 2015-16, total marine and inland fish production was estimated at 550,000 million tonnes out of which 370,000 million tonnes was marine production and the remaining catch came from inland waters. Whereas the production for the year 2014-15 was estimated to be 510,000 million tonnes in which 365,000 million tonnes was marine and the remaining was produced by inland fishery subsector. In Sindh, the majority of the farms are located in Thatta, Badin and Dadu, the three districts through which the River Indus passes. Badin and Thatta have water logged floodplain areas which are suitable for fish farming. In Punjab Province, farms are located mostly in irrigated areas or where there is abundant rain and the soil is alluvial. As a result, Sheikhpura, Gujranwala, and Attock districts have larger number of farms and constitute around three quarters of the total number of farms in Punjab.
In KP the expert said has comparatively fewer farms, because of the cold climate in the mountainous areas. Trout farms are located in Chitral, Swat, Dir, Malakand, Mansehra, and Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA). Carp culture is practiced in Dera Ismail Khan, Kohat, Mardan, Swabi and the Abbottabad districts of KP. The inland fisheries sub sector of agriculture comprise of both capture and aquaculture which is managed by Agriculture Department of each province through its Fisheries Directorates. Fisheries and aquaculture is one of the crop resources. The fisheries sector is significant in the rural areas as it provides livelihood and source of income to the fishermen. The collection of fisheries catch and aquaculture production data is poorly collected and managed in the provinces due to non-cooperation of the stakeholders.
However, fish plays a leading role in provision of animal protein during winter months to the rural communities. The average national fish consumption is 2 kg/capita/yearly but is only 10 percent of the world average, which stands at 17 kg per capita.
Aquaculture in Pakistan is growing at different pace in the last ten years; aquaculture production has risen from metric tonnes to over thousands of tonnes. Increase has largely been driven by the entry of commercial aquaculture producers in Punjab and Sindh provinces and adoption of intensive production technologies. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is lagging behind in aquaculture compared to other provinces. Punjab and Sindh province fish farmers have started stocking their fish ponds with catfish and tilapia since last two years. The encouragement in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa of the new innovative production methods to the private sector is non-existent. The conceptual frame work of development of aquaculture is too poor to boost the sector activities due to lack of inputs of production and non-availability of proper fisheries extension services in the Fisheries Department. The lack of capacity of the Fisheries Department of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa discourages the emerging commercial aquaculture entrepreneurs and progressive small scale fish farming activities.
The privately owned medium sized commercial hatcheries and production owners in the private sector are not properly encouraged rather the Government Fisheries department consider them as a competitor and they are also not able to meet the quality fish demand of the commercial private sector because of genetically inbreed and diseased fish stock. There is no fishery or aquaculture policy in place in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa nor it is given any priority. The regulatory frame work is non-existent in the province in context of aquaculture product certification and quality assurance. No such plan is in sight on the subject from the Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhawa Fisheries Department.
The Fisheries Department, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has one training centre at Sherabad for carp fisheries but there is no planned training programme in place while in Punjab Fisheries Department has upgraded its training facilities to the level of a University to provide regular training sessions for their own staff and private fish farmers. The farmers need hands-on and practical farm based training in general aquaculture and business management for which the department lacks capacity to do so. The KP Government can step up the promotion of commercial aquaculture in the province through substantial technical and financial support for the upgradation of their facilities and incentives for capacity building as development partners.
The fish farmers have limited capacity in production planning and management skills and do not have the experience on the subject. If they are supported through planned interventions as a result, the subsector will register a tremendous growth in production and will be ranking as one of the fastest growing animal food and income generating industry in the country.
Aquaculture enterprises particularly in trout production have registered increased income from its production related businesses including those involved in the actual production and those concerned with inputs. This is especially true for trout fish seed producers (hatchery operators) who supply fingerlings for trout fish farms.
Omar Hayat asked the government to support them through offering a good price as an incentive to trigger a good production capacity of private farmers. To cater to the millennium goals fisheries and aquaculture can play a positive role. This will in the end be responsible for food security due to increase of income of the farmers.
Pakistan is blessed with a wealth of fishery resources; however, these resources are still not being utilised according to their potential, which results in the under-developed fishery industry; the main causes are lack of institutional facilities, shortage of fish seed of cultural species, lack of basic knowledge of fish farm and capital to run new ventures.
Despite sufficient production as well as export potential, the fisheries subsector in Pakistan has not been able to attain a satisfactory growth rate. The world-wide shortage of animal protein has resulted in increased attention towards programmes of aquatic resources. He said there is a substantial scope for fish production from aquaculture in private sector. For the mobilization of private sector awareness raising, provision of training for capacity building of Fish Farming as business, infrastructure development with financial support, input supplies for production ie quality fish seed supplies at nominal rates, inorganic fertiliser, tax holiday, and lease of government land for fish farming have been granted by the government which would invigorate fish culture in private sector to a large extent while trout farming will require different set of inputs ie Fish Seed, Fish Feed and Equipment with infrastructure development.
The development of aquaculture and mariculture - the two fastest growing food export activities in. the world in value terms - can be developed in Pakistan, as high value fish species can be produced as temperature regime are conducive for it. Further encouragement to greater integration of the sector are warranted in tourism such as trout fish culture in hilly areas and coastal zone management programmes so as to derive benefits through eco-tourism and marine park initiatives, sport fishing and similar activities.