Saba Javed

Pakistan’s fisheries exports are operating at full capacity, and are projected to increase further during the second half of the current fiscal year, said Muslim Mohammedi, Chairman of Pakistan Fisheries Exporters Association (PFEA). According to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), Pakistan’s seafood exports grew by 14.81% to $354.874 million during the first nine months (July-March) of the current fiscal year (2022-23) from $309.109 million during the corresponding period of the last fiscal year. On year-on-year (YoY) basis, fish exports increased by 32.44% to $54.694 million during March 2023 from $41.298 million during the same month of last year.

Similarly, seafood exports increased by 42.71% on month-on-month (MoM) basis during March 2023 to $54.694 million compared to $38.326 million during February 2023. Seafood trade surged 29.83% during 9MFY23 as exports increased from 116,333 metric tons to 151,030 metric tons. “Currently, the seafood industry in Pakistan faces various challenges, including overfishing, illegal fishing and poor-quality control. These issues led to declining fish populations, decreasing export volumes and increasing health concerns,” Mohammedi said while talking to WealthPK.

He said the government is taking steps to address these issues by introducing new regulations, implementing sustainable fishing practices and improving the quality of seafood processing and storage facilities. Pakistan has a significant fishing industry and seafood is one of the country’s top exports. The major export destinations for Pakistani seafood include China, Malaysia, Thailand, the Middle East and Europe.

As per a World Bank study, China consumes 65 million tons of seafood annually. The export of Pakistan’s aquatic products to China has enormous potential to grow. As the world’s largest importer of aquatic products, China imported $13.8 billion worth of aquatic products in 2021. Mohammedi said fisheries is a big and emerging industry for Pakistan’s exports. Shrimp, cuttlefish, squid, Indian mackerel, and sardines are among the top seafood items exported from Pakistan.

“To increase seafood production and shrimp business, farmers need a good, cheap and easily available aqua feed which can be possibly available with the help of Chinese investment,” he said. Mohammedi said Chinese investors can bring the new fish breeds to Pakistan by setting up their farms and hatcheries and help farmers by providing them with feed and technology to enhance their production.

The PFEA chairman said Chinese investors can help Pakistan lay a robust aquaculture infrastructure in specific areas and improve the capacity building of the people associated with the business. He said joint fisheries business policies must be formulated, and fishery trade expansion possibilities must be explored. “Fish farming investments in Pakistan are a profitable business for both Chinese and Pakistani investors,” he added.

Pakistan’s overall food group exports during 9MFY23 decreased by 3.36% compared to the corresponding period of last year. During the period under review, different food commodities, including rice, vegetables, fruits, oilseeds, meat, fish, spices and others, valuing $3.814 billion, were exported against the exports of $3.947 billion during the same period last year.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk