KARACHI, July 8: The Sindh Fisheries Minister, Zahid Ali Bhurgari, said that the Sindh government would allot 20,000 acres for the development of aquaculture in the province on modern lines.

Initially, he said the project would be established in Thatta and Badin districts and subsequently it would be extended to other parts of the province.

Mr Bhurgari was speaking as chief guest at a training workshop on shrimp and hatchery management on Tuesday.

The event was organised by the Sindh Fisheries Department and the Fisheries Development Board Pakistan, a non-governmental organisation (NGO). It was held under the auspices of Aquaculture and Shrimp Farming, a project of the Federal Ministry for Food, Agriculture and Livestock (Minfal).

Approved by the PSDP and Ecnec and to be executed by the Minfal and FDB, the project will cost Rs1.997 billion and it will be completed in five years.

The minister said that the fisheries was a major industry and could play a crucial role in the provision of jobs to many educated youth. He, however, deplored that despite being an important sector, it was badly neglected by the previous governments.

The provincial minister said that aquaculture (farming of fresh water and salt water organisms) had a great potential in the province as was evident from the experiences of Hawkesbay and Gharo.

Mr Bhurgari said that the government was fully aware of the importance of the fishing industry and was committed to make all-out efforts for its uplift. But at the same time, he added, there was a great need for making the public-private collaboration more effective without which the fishing industry could not make much progress.

He dispelled the impression that the fishing industry had become redundant. On the contrary, the industry had a great potential and could contribute a lot to the national exchequer, the minister said, adding that if developed properly this sector would help check the problem of unemployment as well.

Mr Bhurgari also stressed the need for creating awareness and imparting training to the fishing community regarding tuna fish, which was a valuable commodity in the international market and was easily available in our waters but unfortunately, our fishermen were simply just not aware of the fact.

The chief executive officer of the Fisheries Development Board (FDB), Dr Nasim Akhtar, explaining the role of his organisation in the development of the fishing sector in Pakistan said that the FDB would serve as a bridge between the government and the private sector and would help promote investment in this sector.

He also informed the audience about various projects that the FDB intended to implement in the country for the development of the fishing industry in collaboration with the Minfal and the relevant provincial authorities.

According to him, the FFB will establish 11 model fish and shrimp farms. Besides that, cage culture would be introduced at five sites in different reservoirs of the country.

The FDB also planned to establish model fish markets at Gwadar, Sukkur, Thatta, Lahore, Rawalpindi and Peshawar.

The FDB official said that the board would provide technical support, research and development funds and training as well.

He said that the FDB had also suggested preparation of a master plan for the coastal and inland aquaculture and for the strengthening of capacity building of fisheries management wing in the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock (Minfal), Marine Fisheries Department and provincial fisheries department.

A message of the federal secretary of Minfal, Ziaur Rehman, was also read out.

Secretary Fisheries Department Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqui, Director Fisheries Department Anwarul Islam and others also spoke.