Sri Lanka to spend Rs. 2 bn on minimising post-harvest fish losses
Sri Lankan government agencies will be seeking to position the country’s fisheries industry as a major export earning sector while catering to the local fish demand for consumption by minimising the post harvest loss in fish quality, a senior cabinet minister disclosed.
According to National Aquatic Resource Agency, the country’s post harvest fish quality loss was around 40-60 per cent.
“Around 40-60 per cent of the fish caught by fishermen is being destroyed as it is not suitable for human consumption,” Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Development Minister Mahinda Amaraweera said.
The fisheries sector contribution to the GDP could be increased up to 5 per cent by minimising post-harvest losses, he said revealing that the ministry’s target for this year is to harvest 812,000 metric tons of fish from 389,500 metric tons last year.
A sum of Rs.2 billion has been allocated for the development of fisheries harbours which would help reduce post-harvest losses and improve the supply side, a senior Finance Ministry official said.
Measures will also be taken to enhance Sri Lanka’s fish stock to take advantage of opportunities such as GSP +, he disclosed.
The fisheries sector is one of the focal points of the blue-green economy.
The Fisheries Ministry will modernise this sector with subsidies for higher end fishing vessels including multi-day fishing boats and for the installation of modern on board cold storage technology, he pointed out.
Minister Amaraweera has instructed Ministry officials to implement programmes to minimise post-harvest losses.
The improvement of fishermen’s knowledge, modernisation of fishing vessels, introduction of new hi-tech fishing vessels, the use of quality ice and water, and the introduction of new technology for fishing were among those initiatives.
The ministry has also taken measures to regularise the fish harvest unloading process and improve refrigeration facilities at fisheries harbours.
Two aquaculture industrial parks will be set up in the Mannar and Batticaloa districts while the establishment of another aquaculture park is being proposed in Hambantota district.
The South Korean government has provided a soft loan facility to develop four multipurpose harbours in Madagal, Chalai, Udappuwa and the island of Delft to assist the Sri Lankan government’s attempts to boost the local fishing industry.
Two technical training colleges on fishing and aquaculture will be established to enhance the technical capacity of the Sri Lankan fishing community in developing sustainable and energy efficient practices in fishing.
The Seafood Exporters Association of Sri Lanka (SEASL), fishing communities, government agencies, non-government organsations and academics have also initiated the Fishery Improvement Project for Blue Swimming Crab fishing industry.
This coastal fishery industry project will be implemented in the shallow waters of the southern tip of Gulf of Mannar across the Palk Straits to the Southern boundary of the Bay of Bengal.
SEASL has proposed to implement the Sri Lankan Tuna and Billfish Fishery Improvement Project this year concentrating on the improvement of the country’s long line fishing fleet used for tuna and billfish fishing, two types of fish which have a larger market in EU and Eastern Asia.