DM Monitoring
Gwadar: The federal government will establish Gwadar Blue Economy Centre to explore and exploit marine resources and blue economy including port & shipping management which is directly and indirectly associated to China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
An amount of Rs1.5 billion has been allocated for the project of establishment of Gwadar Blue Economy Centre in the PSDP 2024-25, and it is sponsored/executed by Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Gwadar Port Authority.
In pursuit of optimal utilization of wealthy resources Pakistan is gifted with, there is a need for establishing a ‘ Center for Blue Economy ‘ (CBE’ ) that could be helpful in identifying, developing, implementing, and managing marine resources within a holistic framework that also prioritize sustainability while ensuring measures to conserve marine as well as coastal ecosystem, official documents revealed. According the documents, CBE would also aim at integrating economic and human development, minimizing environmental degradation, and building resilience while fostering mitigation opportunities.
Under the project, a dedicated and well-equipped policy cell would be established within the Center for Blue Economy comprising relevant high/mid/lower-level experts to provide a platform for investment and business friendly policy formulation in the areas relevant to blue economy and its promotion.
Under Gwadar Blue Economy Centre, model shrimp hatchery/farms would be set up at Gwadar, Pasni, Ormara, Jiwani, Pishikan, Surbandar Gunz for the production of disease free seed and promotion of shrimp culture in Pakistan.
The prime objectives of the centre will be to develop at least seven model shrimp hatcheries, the pathogen free shrimp seed from using artificial breeding from wild shrimp for shrimp culture development, to establish algal and artemia culture for shrimp feed using modern techniques, to enhance growth and reproductive rate of shrimp using algal und artemia feed, and to supply shrimp seed to public-private sector for the development of shrimp culture. The project is aligned with the objectives set under longterm development plan and government sectoral priorities and the 14th SDG goals, life below water & blue economy. Effective and efficient development can only be ensured to people of Pakistan by enhancing the institutional and technical capability and capacity of the ocean and blue economy of Pakistan, which in fact is not possible without the well established and elaborate research & study centers in the field of blue economy which has a huge potential in Balochistan and particularly Gwadar. The potential of blue economy in Pakistan is certainly a source of enormous wealth for Pakistan. Pakistan’s coastline of more than 1000 kilometers and an exclusive economic zone of 290,000 kilometers is rich with oceanic wealth and natural resources.
In pursuit of optimal utilization of wealthy resources Pakistan is gifted with, there is a need for establishing a state of the art Gwadar Blue Economy Centre that could be helpful in identifying, developing, implementing, and managing and preserving marine resources within a holistic framework that also prioritize sustainability while ensuring measures to conserve marine as well as coastal ecosystem. In addition, Gwadar Blue Economy Centre would also aim at integrating economic and human development, minimizing environmental degradation, and building resilience while fostering mitigation opportunities. This could assist in easing the economic pressure and could support creation of new business and job opportunities that could potentially attract huge local and international investments.
Pakistan has great potential for sustainable development, socio-economic growth, business and job opportunities, and addition in its value chain only if it prioritizes blue economy and optimally utilises its resources. It is projected that the return on investment in blue economy can yield Pakistan minimum of five fold return on investment. In order to develop a human resource pool in the field of blue economy and marine resources, the project includes a component for provision of scholarships to the highly talented individuals. These scholarships will be for one- and two-years degree programmes in the specialized fields of blue economy and marine resources, the documents revealed. The merit based scholarships will be fully funded and will be offered to individuals of the Gwadar & Lasbela Districts who pursue their degree programmes in the renowned western universities.
