Fish export ban :
Rs. 23b annual loss:
EU to decide by January
by Rohana Jayalal
Sri Lanka has lost considerable revenue on the export of fisheries
products over the past few years due to the EU imposed ban.
Sri Lanka’s fish exports to the European Union make up 68 percent of
its total fish exports, which brings in Rs. 23 billion annually.
The remaining 32 percent is sent to the United States, Japan and
other non-EU countries.Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Development
Minister Mahinda Amaraweera told the Sunday Observer that the recovery
of exports will be a great step forward for Sri Lanka’s competitive
fisheries products sector and keeping its global image.
According to EU officials Sri Lanka has fulfilled the regulations
needed to meet European standards, to lift the ban.
A technical evaluation team from the EU arrived in Sri Lanka earlier
this month to assess Sri Lanka’s progress in implementing its
recommendations on the prevention of illegal, unreported and unregulated
fishing practices.
Amaraweera said the Government was hopeful that the European Union
will lift the ban on Sri Lanka’s fish exports before the end of the
year.
The EU ban took effect in January this year over the failure of the
previous administration to prevent local fishermen from violating
international fisheries laws.
The Minister said the government had taken action to ensure that the
fishermen complied with all the conditions laid down by the EU.
The government is awaiting the European Union’s assessment of Lanka’s
crackdown on illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.
The EU had laid down 57 conditions, for Sri Lanka and 35 of them have
been fulfilled. The 35 conditions fall under the 36 essential conditions
and the Fisheries Ministry had ensured that all of them are met.
The time stipulated by the European Union for fulfilling these
conditions ends on October 31.
“I took up the issue with EU officials during a recent visit to
Spain. I also briefed them on how Sri Lanka was fast tracking the
implementation process,” the Minister said.
The ministry had already installed Vessel Monitoring Systems (VMS)
free on 1,615 multi-day fishing craft. The location of the boat could be
monitored through the operation centre at the Department of Fisheries
and Aquatic Resources, he said.
Recently, officials of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission came to Sri
Lanka to study the facts regarding the withdrawal of the EU fish export
ban.
It is expected that the European Union will adopt a proposal to
remove the fish export ban imposed on Sri Lanka after the
representatives submit their reports to the European Parliament.
Minister Amaraweera said that Cabinet approval had been granted to
amend the Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Act No, 02 of 1996 to impose
penalties for the offences committed in international seas to conform
with international standards, to determine the penalties regarding the
quantity of fish and the size of the vessel at the time of the offence,
to enhance the penalty for offences regarding import and export to five
times the value of the quantity of fish, to introduce a method of
administrative penalty which is absent in the current Act and to create
a sustainable and responsible fisheries culture in Sri Lanka.
The Minister said that If needed, the government is ready to answer
any questions the EU might have and to clarify its policy and plans to
overhaul the country’s fishing industry.
Meanwhile, an European Union official said the ban on fishery exports
to the EU will be lifted after further necessary steps are taken.
According to the official, the Council commended the steps Sri Lanka
has taken to comply with the regulations of the Indian Ocean Tuna
Commission.
“The council encourages the Sri Lankan authorities to take further
measures necessary to address the shortcomings in the context of the EU
legislation on illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing,” the
official said.
He said that the legal processes were slow, as the EU has to go
through a rigorous evaluation process before taking the final decision.
Sri Lanka received a ‘yellow card’ or a strict warning in November
2012 before the ban was imposed, as the country was not complying with
international rules on illegal fishing.
But the Council banned fish imports from Sri Lanka last year due to
EU concerns that illegal fishing is environmentally harmful and
unsustainable.
The EU expressing appreciation over the new government’s policies on
improving human rights and strengthening democratic institutions, is
seriously re-evaluating Sri Lanka’s call to grant the concession once
again for exports to the EU and to lift restrictions imposed on the
export of fish products.
According to records, Sri Lanka’s sea food exports to the EU Zone
accounted for nearly 68 percent of its total sea foods exports.
Sea food exports declined from 21 million dollars in February 2014 to
11.2 million dollars in February 2015 a plunge of 46 percent while
fisheries exports plummeted from 42.7 million dollars to 27.7 million
dollars a reduction of 35 percent, according to records. |