The New Nation - Internet Edition

A.T.M.Nurun Nabi

The fish production in the country has increased substantially in last five years. The total fish production in the country during the fiscal 2006-07 stood at 24.42 lakh metric tonnes, higher by 1.12 lakh metric tonnes over the fiscal 2005-06 and by 6.60 lakh metric tonnes from 2000-01. But the price is too high and almost beyond the purchasing power of the members of the poor i.e. those who earn one dollar a day.

According to Bangladesh Economic Review, the total areas of water in which fish automatically grow or cultivated are 44.36 lakh hectares. The area of the open water is 40.47 lakh hectares (91.1 percent) while the closed water bodies cover 3.88 lakh hectares. The distribution of areas is as follows:

Rivers and estuaries 10.32 lakh hectares, beels (marsh) 1.14, the Kaptai Lake 0.69, flood plain 28.33, ponds 2.42, baor 0.05, shrimp farm 1.41 and marine 0.48 nautical miles. Of the total productions, rivers & estuaries contribute 1.40 lakh metric tonnes, The Sunderban 0.16, marsh 0.80, the Kaptai Lake 0.07, flooded water 7.60, ponds 7.90, baor 0.04, shrimp hatchery 1.30 and marine fisheries 5.14 only.

The number of the government hatcheries in the country is 112 and the private hatcheries is 731. These hatcheries produce 2.08 crore of fries and 461.06 crore.

To improve the fish production in the country, the government has formulated eight strategic papers for the development sector. These papers are Aquaculture Strategy, Aquaculture Extension Strategy, Inland Captive Fisheries Strategy, Marine Sector Strategy, Shrimp Strategy, Monitoring and Evaluation Strategy, Human Resource Development Study and Quality Control Strategy.

In the National Budget 2007-08, the government has allocated taka 332 crore under non-development budget and taka 219 crore under development budget to Livestock and Fisheries Ministry.

Experts are of the view that the fish production would have been much higher had not dams been built on the international rivers flowing to Bangladesh through India, seriously affecting the fish production.

A good number of rivers, tributaries, river-lets, canal, water marsh and ponds have dried while 55 species of fish have already disappeared. In an agro-based country like Bangladesh, fisheries sector is one of the most important and promising sectors having vital contribution towards the economic development

This sector plays a significant role in meeting the protein demand, earning foreign exchange, and in the socio-economic development of the rural people by alleviating poverty through employment generation. Fish provides with 63 percent of dietary protein requirement of the country.

Programmes for infrastructure development and seting up of hatcheries and training are being implemented for expansion and development of shrimp culture.

The government has also undertaken project of assisting the fishermen of 11 districts (illegally) trading with jhatka (fries of river shad) that they refrain from neting them. As a result, the river shad production increased to 255 thousand metric tonnes from 200 thousand metric tonnes and earned revenues of taka 850 crore. The country earned $ 459 million by exporting frozen fish during the fiscal year 2005-06 and $515.32 million during the fiscal 2006-07.