Renowned national expert on fisheries and aquaculture, Omar Hayat has said that like sectors fisheries also have the potential of employment generation to play major role in the poverty alleviation in the country.
Talking to this scribe, he said that due to extensive number of pre-harvest, harvest and post harvest activities associated fish value chain, the estimation of existing jobs in fisheries and aquaculture in Pakistan is complex.
He said that jobs in aquaculture range from production and supply of production inputs of seed, feed, equipments, etc, to the farming, harvesting, processing, marketing and distribution of fish.
It is estimated that with establishment of any type of small fish farm, two to three direct full time jobs are created and additional three part time jobs are created in the value chain. With the enhancement of production of trout fish in hilly rural area will improve productivity of work force and income level as well. When production of trout fish increase processing units will be established by the private sector which will create employment opportunities to rural poor women in these remote areas of Pakistan.
Omar Hayat, who has served in KP Fisheries Department for a period of over thirty-year said that improvement in the national economy, poverty alleviation and food security is essential for both political and financial health of the country.
He said the role of fisheries and aquaculture can be measured with its contribution to national economy to the tune of GDP ratio and the employment generated in its activities. The value added multiplier can indicate the representative increase in gross domestic product corresponding to a one unit increase in aquaculture value added.
The uplift of the sector reduces poverty and increases the income by creating well paying jobs, evaluation of the contribution through aquaculture employment multiplier, the increase in the total employment for the entire economy corresponding to one extra job created in the aquaculture.
The contribution to food availability, one of the three dimensions of food security can be assess through the net sum of protein equivalent (direct contribution) and the relation between the aquaculture net foreign exchange earning/saving and total value of food imports (indirect contribution, Aquaculture labour income and employment multipliers can be used to quantify aquaculture's contribution to second dimension of food security.
Aquaculture tax multipliers and the aquaculture ratio between the net foreign exchange earnings and whole economy net foreign exchange earning can be used to estimate the sector's contribution to food utilization the third dimension of food security.
He said that the sector provides livelihood to rural population due to the extensive number of pre-harvest, harvest and post harvest activities associated with the fish. Jobs range from the production and sale of inputs to farming and harvesting, processing and marketing and distribution of fish.
He was of the view that though fishing and aquaculture operations are informal and small scale, but are highly organized and industrial in nature. "We have potential to develop Aquaculture on industrial scale wherein work force can be gainfully engaged in different activities," he maintained.
Pakistan, he said, has the potential to export trout fish, but it would have to develop the sector on scientific lines and turn fish farms into enterprises. But, the lack of capacity of the authorities concerned in provinces and isolated efforts are hurdles in bringing the required change and aligning of the activities towards export.
The proper planning and development of Fisheries and Aquaculture sub sector of Agriculture will help secure sustainable fresh water resource management, also contributing to economic and social development of respective region.
"Improvement in Aquaculture working conditions will further enhance response of the private sector for investment and enhance response of market demands resulting in improved businesses through increased production of trout fish for export and also local market access," concluded the expert.
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