ISLAMABAD: Eight fish landing jetties line up under CPEC projects, WealthPK reported on Monday.
Balochistan is the largest landholding province of Pakistan with its 720-km Makran coastal belt having eight major landing sites and over 25 fisher settlements. The major fishing lands along the Balochistan coastline are located at Sonmiani, Ormara, Pasni, Gwadar, and Jiwani. Around 40,000 fishermen earn their livelihood by working along this coast.
Balochistan’s annual fish capture is 153,1555 metric tons, making up 34% of Pakistan’s total fish production. About 80% of the total fish catch is exported to the Middle East, South Asia, Central Asia, and many other international destinations, making a significant contribution to the national exchequer, WealthPK reported.
During fiscal year 2019-20, the total marine and inland fish production was estimated at 701,726 metric tonnes out of which 474,025 metric tonnes were from marine waters and the remaining catch from inland waters.
In Balochistan, the commercial marine fish fauna consists of 250 demurral fish species, 15 different types of shrimp, 20 large, 15 medium, and 50 small pelagic fish species, 5 lobsters, and 12 cuttlefish/squid/octopus’ species.
Currently, there are only 10 fish processing plants along the coastline, which are operated by the private sector and process around 23,000MT fish without value addition.
There are three fishing zones in our Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) including Sindh and Balochistan, Buffer Zone created by the Federal Government to help local fishermen, and Zone Three comprising 20 to 200 nautical miles under the jurisdiction of the Federal Government.
CPEC projects have opened avenues of opportunities for this sector, ranging from job creations to a potential economic boom. The construction of eight (8) fish landing jetties has been prioritized under CPEC projects with an estimated cost of $150 million.
There are different types of fish farms that utilize different aquaculture methods but the Government of Pakistan has allowed only gill netting, pelagic long lining, bottom-set long lining, squid jigging, and pot and caged fishing categories of vessels. Violation of these standards set by the government invokes a penalty of Rs1 million and cancellation of licence, WealthPK reported.
The eight fish landing jetties are going to be constructed under public-private partnership in which local and Chinese companies are talking keen interest. The cage system method will be adopted in all eight fish landing jetties.
This method is also widely referred to as off-shore cultivation. Fish are kept in cage-like structures and are “artificially fed” and harvested. The fish farming cage method has made numerous technological advances over the years, especially in terms of reducing diseases and environmental concerns.
