Aquaculture fish production to be doubled

by L. S. A. Wedaarachchi

The National Aquaculture Development Authority (NAQDA) aims to double inland aquaculture fish production in Sri Lanka.

At present aquaculture fish production is MT 33,000 and NAQDA believes it can be increased up to MT 74,450 by exploiting the aquatic resources.

The chairman NAQDA Munidasa Premachandra said that nearly 275,000 water hectares are available for aquaculture development activities.

Under the guidance of the Ministry of Fisheries, NAQDA has implemented an islandwide program to encourage rural individuals and entrepreneurs to take part in aquaculture activities.

NAQDA has eight aquaculture development centres in Udawalawe, Dambulla, Nuwara Eliya, Inginiyagala, Pitipana, Rambodagalle and Pumbala. The centres are manned by qualified staff and prospective aquaculturists can obtain assistance.

The life cycle of fish has three stages, post larvae (PI) fry and fingerlings. The Udawalawe, Dambulle and Iginiyagala fish breeding centres produce PI, fry and fingerlings for distribution to other districts in the country, he said.

To upgrade the inland fisheries and aquaculture sector, a loan scheme was implemented by the government.

The Asian Development Bank provided Rs. 2,000 million for the loan scheme and the key objective was to improve food security and reduce poverty especially in rural areas by promoting market driven and sustainable management of inland fisheries and aquaculture through resource development and quality improvement.

According to the chairman, Aquaculture Fisheries Societies and small and medium scale enterprises have shown a very encouraging response for the loan scheme.

Sri Lanka is considered a pioneering country which entered the tropical ornamental fish trade. Sri Lanka's earnings from the industry have been in the US $ 5.0 - 8.0 million range during the last decade.

The country's ornamental fish exports include freshwater and marine species. All fish from marine sources are caught from the wilds. the species which have gained popularity are live bearers Gold fish varieties Barbs, Damios Tetras and cichlids. Among the major buyers of Sri Lanka's ornamental fish exports are USA, Japan, Germany, UK, France, Italy and the Netherlands.

A major plus point for our ornamental fish industry is its concern for the quality of its products. It is particularly observed in the wild capture of fish since Sri Lanka is renowned for not using chemicals.

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