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Fish Industry
All over the world man is half fed due to 60 per cent animal protein gap on the daily diet. It is estimated that the situation would further deteriorate by 2025, when the population shall exceed to 260 million.Sea and the oceans cover the 70.8 per cent area of our planet and are productive from surface to 200 meters depth. They are dependable natural resource of the animal protein diet in the form of 400 varieties of fish and shellfish.
The grains, vegetables and fruits can only be produced when cultivated and grown on land with considerable efforts and investment. Out of the total cultivated area only 50 per cent is productive which is shrinking day by day due to increase in the population. To provide balanced diet many countries of the world, like South Korea, Japan, Taiwan and the European and American countries, have exploited their water resources with full capacity. While in Pakistan the resources available to its coast were virtually neglected. Since 1950 the government has mobilised 65 per cent of its manpower and 50 per cent of financial resources to develop the agriculture sector. Whereas 0.1 per cent manpower and also 0.1 per cent financial resources have been utilised to develop the marine fisheries sector in Pakistan.
Pakistan has a total coastline of 1,120 km and a total fishing area of approximately 300,270 sq. km. Pakistan's fishing grounds are termed as highly rich in marine life with a vast variety of species having commercial value. However, this potential is not reflected in the export earnings of seafood sector, which has remained stagnant about Rs7 to 8 billion since 1997-98. This situation is mainly attributed to highly unorganised nature of private sector, lack of focus in government policies and little institutional investment in public and private sector projects.
The findings of an FAO report indicate that during the next 25 years the world population shall be doubled, the livestock population would shrink and most of the nations will have to depend on oceanic resources to meet bulk of the animal protein demand. But unfortunately the authorities have not taken any notice and therefore, not made plans to take appropriate action to effectively overcome this problem.
Health experts say the people who take more intake of seafood remain healthier than grain users, as an ounce of seafood is equivalent to 6 ounces of the grains. In the fish producing countries fisheries and aquaculture are the important source of food, employment, and revenue and it minimises pressure on land and it also supports the navy during emergency.
The global capture of fisheries and aquaculture was 125 million tones in 1999. During the past decades, per capita fish consumption has expanded globally along with economic growth and increase in per capita incomes.
Operational fleet in Pakistan consists of about 18,000 small wooden boats of 1.0 to 4.0 Gt. About 30 per cent were the sailboats while 70 per cent were motorised. Majorities of boats are highly under-powered, devoid of navigation and fish finding equipment, powered gears, refrigeration and cold storage facilities. The gears are simple and manually operated and the output is limited. The fishing activities are confined to the territorial waters, within 20 km from the shoreline. Out of the 38 fishing stations limited infrastructure facilities are available at Karachi, Korangi, Pasni and the Gwader stations. The remaining stations do not have jetties, water, power, fish storage and the handling facilities.
The negligence in exploiting marine fisheries resources in Pakistan is highly regrettable. The world market stood at 52 billion US$ in 1997 with Pakistan's share of less than 0.33 per cent. Due to the changing eating habits and depleting natural resources, world seafood market is termed as mainly 'sellers market'. The focus in fishing is shifting from already exploited regions to under-exploited areas because of conservation and environment pressures. However, despite such favourable circumstances, Pakistan's seafood exports have decreased, in 1992 the highest figures were US $181 million.
Employment
The fisheries sector in Pakistan offers direct employment to thousands of people, most of which work as fishermen. According to the official figures, the total number of persons engaged in fisheries sector during 1999-2000 was estimated at 395,000. Out of which, 125,000 persons (31.6 per cent) were employed in the marine sector and 270,000 (68.4 per cent) in inland fisheries.
During 1998-99 about 570,000 metric tons of over 50 different verities of fish and 30.000 metric shrimps were produced. Out of the total 40 per cent fish was locally consumed, 35 per cent small non-edible fish was converted into low quality fish meal to supplement the poultry feed, 10 per cent salted and dried and 15 per cent shrimps and the fish were frozen. In all 25 per cent produced was exported, valued at $ 170 million.
The total fish production during 1999-2000 was estimated at 627,000 million tons, which rose to 654,500 m tons in 2000-01. Of which, share of marine sector was 452,000 and 473,000 million tons and inland contribution was 175,000 and 181,500 million tons respectively.
Growth Rate
Due to the substantial increase in the fish catch, the over all fisheries growth was 8.5 per cent during the year 1999-2000 as compared with 0.6 per cent recorded in the preceding year. While the marine fishing recorded a growth of 9.5 per cent and the inland fishing posted a growth of 7.1 per cent, reflecting a significant growth of fishery sector.
Marine fisheries
The marine fisheries of Pakistan account for about 79 per cent of the total catch of fish, carried out in coastal operations on two distinct grounds. The Sindh coast, extending south-east from Karachi to the border with India, is characterised by a broad continental shelf and a coastline marked by a maze of creeks and mangrove covered mudflats of the Indus river delta serving as nursery grounds for many fin and shellfish species. The Balochistan coast, roughly north and west of Karachi, is generally mountainous with large bays and a narrow, abruptly descending shelf.
Both on the Sindh and Balochistan coasts there are many, widely dispersed, small landing places utilised by small craft equipped with sails and/or outboard engines.
Inland fisheries
Apart from marine fisheries, inland fisheries, comprises of rivers, lakes, ponds, dams etc. Inland fisheries of a generally subsistence nature are carried out on rivers, irrigation canals and reservoirs, engaging nearly 270,000 people, mostly part-time and involving more than 14,645 small crafts.
Aquaculture
According to the definition, aquaculture, simply defined as the farming of various types of fish. Fish show great promise as a 'crop' that will respond well to the benefits of being raised in a controlled environment. In particular, they appear to have a good profit potential for the small to medium size growers who are willing to invest capital, time and management skills to build a profitable business of their own. With increasing population and decline of the world's fisheries, fish farming has nowhere to go but 'up' to supply an ever growing demand. It is forecasted that in the third millennium aquaculture would contribute to global food security even more than in the past three decades. Aquaculture's contribution toward global fisheries landings continued to grow (31.3 per cent in 1999) and it continued to dominate all other animal food-producing sectors. Total aquaculture production in 1999 was about 42.77 million metric tons, valued at 53.56 US billion dollars.
In Pakistan fish farming is practised in the Punjab, Northwest Frontier and Sindh provinces on a limited scale, where species such as trout, common carp, grass carp, silver carp and other carp species have been introduced along with the native Indian carp. Inland fisheries and aquaculture have received increasing attention in recent years and the government has established several fish hatcheries and training facilities for fish farmers in the country. Farming of marine shrimp species has been started on a pilot scale but aquaculture of shrimp could not be established as a regular activity.
The per capita consumption has increased only by 300 g since 1976 to 20001. In the coastal areas, consumers prefer meat and poultry to fish. While most of marine countries provide 20 to 70 kg seafood per person per annum as compared to 1.5 kg in Pakistan, one of the lowest in the world.
Exports
Pakistan exports reasonable quantity of shrimp, fish and its products and earns a substantial amount of foreign exchange.
Shrimp is the main export item both by weight (about 30 000 t) and by value (approximately US$ 73.2 million). It is exported mostly fresh; frozen either as shell-on tails or as peeled and divined. The USA, Japan and the EU are the main importers.
Pakistan's total seafood exports stood at 139 million US$ in 1999-2000. Whereas the sector has a potential to around 1.0 billion US$ from existing natural resources and aquaculture in fisheries sector can yield even higher export earnings from fisheries sector in Pakistan.
Pakistan also exports fish meal, fish maws and shark fins, as well as growing quantities of chilled fish, for which the main markets are Singapore and the Gulf. In recent years export of these items has not shown any significant increase because of the increased quantities of fishmeal required by the poultry industry. Out of the total installed processing capacity less than 40 per cent is being utilised.
Future prospects
Pakistan's marine fishing activities are confined to the intense exploitation of inshore resources. Most of the fishing effort is directed toward the shrimp resources, which are fully exploited. Future increase in fish production has to come from a more intense exploitation of offshore pelagic resources.
Fishing in deeper waters could be done by upgraded and converted shrimp trawlers or newly introduced industrial type of boats.
While the pelagic resources are now well known and are already well exploited, the prospects for tuna fish in Pakistan EEZ seem to be good. It is estimated that Pakistan can earn an additional US $80 to 100 million by exporting fresh and canned tuna fish, usually sold at throwaway prices in dry form. About 2 hundred thousand tons of tuna fish is caught annually. This fish is sometime exported to Sri Lanka at 50 cents per kg, in dry form, while it can easily fetch US $4 per kg or more if properly packed or in fresh form. Recently, Sri Lanka has shown interest in importing salted tuna fish. However, the build-up of tuna fleets by other countries in the region has affected catch rates. Sizeable stocks of mesopelagic fish have been discovered which in future might be utilised for fish meal and oil production.
Good development prospects also exist in the field of inland fisheries and aquaculture. The country has about 2 million hectares of freshwater bodies in the form of lakes, reservoirs and rivers, the fisheries potential of which is only slightly utilised at present. Similarly, the development of brackish-water farming of shrimp in the creeks and estuaries of Sindh offer some prospects.
Improved institutional arrangements, better fish handling, marketing and quality control, the rationalisation of existing fleets and processing plants will all be required if future expansion is to be more orderly and efficient.
Based on the export potential, current and potential employment opportunities and threats to survival of seafood industry in Pakistan, SMEDA decided to review the industrial value chain from harvesting to processing, with the objective to develop a strategy for optimal utilisation of marine resources. The fisheries development strategy incorporates public and private sector interventions in all effecting areas, i.e., regulation, technology, management, marketing and human resources with a view to increase export earnings, create and sustain employment and bring about qualitative change in lives of millions of people involved in this trade.
