January 2003

LOCATION AND MAIN LANDING PLACES

Pakistan is located in southwest Asia with the high Pamir Plateau to the north and the vast Arabian Sea to the south. The Tropic of Cancer passes immediately south of the country. In the north, the border of Pakistan touches Sinkiang province of China, to the northwest lies Afghanistan, while on the eastern side lies India, and to the south is the Arabian Sea. The country lies approximately between 23 30' and 40 N latitude and 60 and 80 E longitude. The capital of the country is Islamabad, and the national language is Urdu. The River Indus, with its tributaries, irrigates the great plain of the country. The southern part of the Indus plain is sandy. The Indus River finally drains into the Arabian Sea in Sindh, after forming the massive Indus delta.

Several small marine landing centres exist in Pakistan, scattered in coastal areas, where traditional and motorized craft land their catches. There are four major fish harbours (two in Sindh and two in Balochistan provinces), of which two serve deep-sea vessels. In addition, there are 15 major fish landing centres for inland fisheries. The fisher population of Pakistan is currently (2001) 471 473, which includes full-time, part-time and occasional fishers. There are 8 552 motorized traditional craft and 4 633 modern boats fishing in Pakistani waters. Total annual fish production - marine and inland combined - was 592 000 tonne in 2001. In view of the large number of landing centres, the marine catch is reported by province rather than on an individual port basis.



Pakistan has a coastline of 1 100 km along the Arabian Sea. Territorial waters extend from the coast to the 12-nautical-mile line. Beyond this there is an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) extending to 200 nautical miles (370 km). There are two maritime provinces: Sindh and Balochistan, and in effect these are also two fishing areas.

The northwestern region (Balochistan) or Makran coast extends from Hub River to the Iranian border, and is about 772 km long. The bottom is generally rocky and the shelf is narrow, and the continental slope is very steep. The region is characterized by a number of bays, such as Sonmiani, Ormara, Kalmat, Pasni, Gwader and Giwani.

The southeastern region (Sindh coast) has a coastline of 348 km and extends from the Pakistan-India border to Hub River. The bottom is generally sandy or sandy-cum-muddy. This area, especially in the Indus delta region, extends up to 80 miles from the coastline.
The coastal ecosystem includes numerous deltas and estuaries with extensive inter-tidal mudflats and their associated wetlands, sandy beaches, rocky shores, mangroves, seagrass beds, etc.

The main landing places of Pakistan, together with landings, are given in Table 1.
Table 1. Landings in Pakistan by province (tonne)

FISHERIES POLICIES AND PLANS

Fisheries management

Pakistan is basically an agricultural country, with about two-thirds of its 140 million population dependent, either directly or indirectly, on agriculture. The major activity in this sector has been growing major cash crops, namely wheat, rice, cotton and sugar cane, and to a much lesser extent livestock husbandry. Recognizing the importance of other subsectors of agriculture, the present government has placed a high priority on diversification in the agriculture sector, with specific emphasis on non-traditional activities, including fruit and vegetable production. High on the list is the subsector of Fisheries and Aquaculture, which brings in a significant amount of foreign exchange earnings for the country.

Fishery in Pakistan is basically shrimp oriented; fish and shrimp are processed in the form of chilled, frozen, cured and canned products. In addition, fishmeal is also produced from small pelagics, by-catch and offal of other fisheries. The processing units of the country are old (averaging 40 years). An Inspection Mission of the European Commission visited Pakistan in December 1997 to evaluate conditions of seafood production and processing, and pointed out certain shortcomings, especially hygienic conditions at Karachi Fish Harbour and in processing establishments. The mission report recommended that quality control of fish and fishery products be exercised under appropriate legislative cover.

The Federal Government has provided expertise and technical assistance for seafood establishments to improve their processing conditions in line with various EU directives, and promulgated the Pakistan Fish Inspection and Quality Control Act, 1997, to regulate seafood exports. Further, the Government of Pakistan has launched a programme of upgrading of fishing operations. In the first phase, about 2 000 fishing vessels that supply fish and shrimp to processing establishments will be upgraded. Infrastructure facilities at Karachi fish harbour are being improved. So far, 18 processing establishments have improved their conditions and qualify to export seafood to European Union countries. As a result of these efforts, Pakistan is now included in those countries that possess a harmonized system of quality control for fish and fishery products.

Fishery sector overview

Fish is a source of, on the one hand, cheap and valuable protein for the large population, and, on the other hand, valuable foreign exchange earnings. Fisheries resources offer opportunities for sustainable development and exploitation of various varieties of edible fish and in the process generating both employment opportunities and economic benefits, largely for rural communities. The country's fisheries sector is comparatively small. It contributes only 0.8 percent to overall Gross Domestic Product (GDP), 3.7 percent to Agriculture GDP and less than 1 percent to national employment.

The marine fisheries industry of Pakistan started virtually from scratch, with a single rundown fish trawler, no fish harbour and no fish processing plant. A fish harbour was later constructed at Karachi, in 1958. Subsequently the fishing fleet of the country grew considerably, and has now become mechanized to a large extent. There are some 19 000 fishing boats in coastal areas of Pakistan, operating in shallow coastal waters as well as in offshore areas. Fish production has also increased, peaking at 654 530 tonne 1999, but then declining to 591 658 tonne in 2001.

Fishery plays an important role in the national economy. It provides direct employment for about 379 000 fishermen. In addition, another 400 000 people are employed in ancillary industries. It is also a major source of export earning. In 2000/01 (financial year), fish and fishery products valued at US$ 138 million were exported from Pakistan.

However, it is estimated that about 40 percent of the catch goes to reduction to fishmeal as a result of post-harvest spoilage. This requires measures to reduce losses by improving harvesting techniques and introducing proper handling from catch to end product.

Policies and objectives

The main objective is to exploit natural fisheries resources on the basis of optimum sustainable yields. It should also lead to income generation and employment opportunities for the poor. For optimum utilization of resources, the policy addresses:

Marine capture fisheries

Marine capture fisheries can be divided into three main sectors: coastal fisheries in Sindh and in Balochistan, and deep-sea fisheries.

The coastal or inshore fisheries operate from the shoreline to 12 nautical miles, and are an important socio-economic activity in coastal areas. The fishing vessels are mostly traditional wooden boats of 12-15 m, with ca 16 hp outboard engines and operating in inshore waters. The provincial fisheries department of Sindh and Balochistan manage these. The coastal fishery is subdivided into trawl fishery, gillnet fishery, doonda fishery and katra fishery. Longline gear is used during certain seasons of the year.

Shrimp fishery

Shrimp trawling was introduced in 1958, and thereafter it grew rapidly and now it has become the backbone of the fishing industry of the country. The gear used by shrimp trawlers is a trawl net consisting of a cone-shaped body, closed by a bag and extended at the opening by wings. The trawl net is locally constructed from imported nylon webbings and is called gujjo. A typical trawl boat operates with a 120 hp engine. The net has a circumference of 860 meshes by 50 mm stretched mesh, with the cod-end of 25 mm stretched mesh. The horizontal opening is maintained by otter boards made of wood with iron shoes. The lower edge of the net opening is normally protected by a thick nylon ground rope ballasted with lead snickers. Demersal finfish resources are also harvested as by-catch. These shrimp trawler operate only in Sindh coastal areas, as shrimp trawling is prohibited in Balochistan. In 2001, 2 415 shrimp trawlers were in operation. The shrimp fishery contributed 26 000 tonne of shrimp to marine landing in 2001. These trawlers also landed a large quantity fish: demersal species remain the dominant by-catch, but some pelagic finfish, mainly the short (Indo-Pacific) mackerel and ribbon fish are also caught.

The size of the mesh in the cod-end of the trawl net is very small, at 25 mm stretched, which does not allow juveniles to escape. Therefore, a large number of undersized shrimp and fish are caught. Most of the by-catch, which is known as kachra or trash fish, is sold at very low prices. There is therefore an urgent need to take immediate measures to protect the stocks by increasing the minimum mesh size in the cod-end of the trawl net to allow undersized shrimp to escape, replacing diamond mesh with square mesh, and including an efficient escape device in the net to further help minimize the catch of non-target categories.

Gillnet fishery

Wooden gillnetters use gillnets made up of nylon twine with a stretched mesh of 150 mm. Gillnet is locally known as ruch, and operated all along the coast. The total length of gillnet is between 2.5 and 5 km. The net is 80 meshes deep. The net may be used to fish in mid-water or on the bottom by changing its ballasting and buoyancy. The fishermen usually shoot their nets in the evening and retrieve in the next morning.

Gillnets are used for finfish, mainly targeting the higher-valued commercial pelagic fish species. However, set gillnets are also used by coastal fishermen for catching demersal fish species like marine jewfish, croakers, grunters, snappers and groupers.

Doonda fishery

Doondas are the local term for fibreglass lifeboats of scrapped ships, having an overall length of 25-35 ft (7.5-10.5 m), and converted into fishing boats. These are comparatively new fishing boats in Pakistan, having started in the late 1980s. At present about 2 000 such boats are in operation, mainly based at Karachi harbour, although small fleets of such boats are also operated from Gadani, Pasni, Gwader, Ibrahim Hydri and Chashma Goth. These boats have 22-33 hp inboard engines, can operate down to 20 m depth, carry six crew onboard and usually undertake three trips of 8-14 days each in two months.

These boasts use a special net called "Poplate plastic net". These are polyamide (PA) monofilament nets mainly targeting pomfrets. The net is made up of PA monofilament twine of 0.45 mm diameter with a mesh size of 155 mm stretched. The depth of the net is 80 meshes and average length is 2-4 km. This net is set mostly in 16-20 m bottom depth to catch various demersal fish, such as pomfrets, groupers, grunts and ribbonfish.
These boats also use another special net - "Surmai Plastic net" - to target mackerel.
These are also PA monofilament gillnets, with 0.36 mm diameter filament and 78 mm stretched mesh. They are also 80 meshes deep and set on the bottom or in mid-water.
Usually the fishers use 2-4 km long nets, and operate the gear between 12 and 16 m depth. All these monofilament gillnets are operated year round except in November to January, during which period the doonda boats are used for longline fishing.

Katra fishery

At present, small pelagic species are caught in coastal waters of Sindh by using surrounding nets called katra. Fishing operations are conducted using a boat locally termed hora, and operating in depths of less than 20 m, where good concentrations of clupeids, especially Indian Oil Sardine, exist in the form of scattered shoals. Most katra boats are based at Ibrahim Hydri, Chashma Goth, and Shamspir Baba Island. The peak seasons are October to November and February to April. The catches are exclusively used for producing fishmeal. The duration of each fishing trip is 14-16 hours. No chilling or other preservations is available onboard.

The nets are similar to surrounding nets, with a length ranging from 150 m to 200 m and a depth of 24 to 30 m. The bunt, which retains the catch, lies between two lateral wings. After encircling the fish schools the footrope of the katra net is hauled in from both wings at the same time, so no purse line is used to close the net as done in modern purse seiners. However, an extension rope attached to the middle of the bunt assists in hauling operations. The net is constructed with Polyamide webbings having 12 mm mesh size (stretched) in the bunt and 15 mm stretched mesh in the lateral wings.

Deep-sea fishing

Pakistan, being a coastal state, declared its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) beyond territorial waters up to 200 nautical miles. The zone has remained almost completely unexploited and its fishery resources untapped, because fishing activities of local fishermen were largely confined to territorial waters because of the use of traditional fishing boats. These boats, whether motorized or not, and trawlers or gillnetters, are all small in size and are not equipped with navigation facilities, electronic fish finding equipment, mechanically operated fishing gear, etc.

In order to exploit the resources available in the EEZ, the Government of Pakistan allowed operation of foreign-flag deep-sea fishing trawlers of 300-350 GRT under joint venture schemes from 1982. These trawlers were allowed to fish in the EEZ beyond 35 nautical miles from the shore. A 10 percent royalty was charged on the fish caught by these trawlers. The joint venture fishing scheme with foreign-flag trawlers was stopped in 1986 and since then only Pakistani-flag vessels are allowed to operate in the EEZ, targeting deep-sea demersal fish resources and paying fixed royalty and annual licence fees.

Pakistan's EEZ is known to be rich in large pelagic fish resources. Private entrepreneurs were reluctant to invest in the exploitation of these resources, such as tuna and other large pelagic fishes, because of lack of information about the resources available in the area. On this basis, the government allowed the operation of foreign-flag tuna longliners for the purpose of resource survey and stock assessment. These tuna longliners were allowed to operate in the EEZ of Pakistan beyond 35 nautical miles from the coastline by paying an annual licence fee of PRs 500 000. A 3 percent royalty was also charged on catch. Stock assessment programme by foreign flag tuna longliners was stopped in 1994, and since then only Pakistani-flag tuna longliners are allowed to operate in the EEZ for tuna and other large pelagic fish resources, by paying a fixed royalty and annual licence fee.

MANAGEMENT OF MARINE FISHERIES RESOURCES

According to Pakistan's Constitution, the management of marine fisheries is a federal responsibility only outside the limit of territorial waters (12 nautical miles). The Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock (MINFAL) is the federal agency responsible for fisheries. The Livestock Wing of MINFAL has direct supervision over fisheries matters within the Ministry's jurisdiction. The Marine Fisheries Department (MFD) is the executive fishery agency of the federal government, with primary responsibilities for ensuring management and development of fishery resources in the interest of the nation. For sustainable development and management of marine fisheries resources, MFD promulgated the Exclusive Fishing Zone (Regulation of Fishing) Act, 1975. Fisheries management is carried out through licensing, indicating exploitable stocks and species, designating environmentally friendly fishing gear and methods, and by enforcing restrictions with regards to closed season, closed areas, etc. Pakistan also adheres to the guidelines of the FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries. Most of the fishing grounds exploited so far lie within the jurisdiction of provincial administrations.

Other federal agencies with fisheries-related functions include:

Provincial Governments have separate fisheries administrations, namely:

Pakistan is endowed with an immense wealth of marine and inland fisheries resources that provide a potential sustainable yield of 1.0 million tonne per annum from marine sources alone. Inland waterbodies, such as natural lakes, reservoirs, river systems and ponds, cover an area of approximately 8 million hectares.

The commercially important fisheries resources comprise some 250 demersal, 50 small pelagic, 15 medium-sized pelagic and 20 large pelagic fish species. In addition, there are 15 commercial species of shrimp, 12 of squid/cuttlefish/octopus, and 5 of lobster.

Pakistan supports a wide array of ecosystems. Coastal ecosystems include: numerous deltas and estuaries with extensive intertidal mudflats and their associated wetlands; sandy beaches; rocky shores; mangroves; etc. Mangroves provide invaluable ecological functions. They serve as a shelter for fish and shrimp, and are also a natural habitat for various species of plants, birds and animals. They are also an important buffer against natural disasters, such as winds, storms and floods. The Government of Pakistan, having been empowered by the Forest Law of 1997, declared all mangrove forests to be protected areas. Fishing within mangrove areas is strictly prohibited.

Fishery in Pakistan is still growing and has a large potential, based on great diversity in aquatic resources, promising prospects, well-defined disciplines and - most of all - a clean natural environment.

Legal framework

Exclusive Fishing Zone (Regulation of Fishing) Act, 1975, as amended 1993

This extends to the whole of Pakistan and to waters within the exclusive fishery zone of Pakistan beyond the territorial waters. It regulates the management of fishing in the EEZ of the country. The provisions of the law are in accordance with the provisions provided for in the Law of the Sea Convention, and cover:

Agriculture Produce (Grading and Marketing) Act, 1937

This act provides authority and control for the grading and marketing of agricultural produce. Dry fish, shellfish and fishmeal are graded under the provision of this act.

The Pakistan Animal Quarantine (Import and Export of Animal and Animal Products) Ordinance, 1979

This law provides for control of the import and export of animals and animal products, and the issue of health certificates to regulate the trade and to prevent the introduction or spread of diseases.

The Federal Government, vide Notification No.F.272/FDC/99 dated 6 April 1999, in exercise of the power conferred by Section 12 of the Pakistan Animal Quarantine Ordinance, exempts the export of fish and fishery products from all the provisions.

Sindh Fisheries Ordinance, 1980

This law provides rules and regulations for marketing, handling, transportation, processing and storage of fish and shrimp for commercial purpose and sale of fish used for domestic and inter-provincial trade in the Province of Sindh. Contravention of this Ordinance is punishable by imprisonment up to six months or by a fine of PRs 10 000, or both. A provision also been included for a total ban on the use of destructive fishing gear, and for a closed season for shrimp during June and July.

Balochistan Sea Fisheries Act No. IX, 1971

This law provides authority for control of fishing craft, fishing licences and processing of fish and fishery products in the territorial water of Pakistan along the coast of Balochistan. Contravention of any provision of the Ordinance is punishable by one month imprisonment or PRs 5 000 fine, or both.

Karachi Fisheries Harbour Authority Ordinance No.11, 1984

This law provides the legal basis to carry out efficient operation of harbour facilities and for periodic inspection of hygienic conditions of processing plants, ice plants, cold storage and other related activities.

Coastal Development Authority Act Sindh, Act No. XXVIII, 1994

This law provides the legal basis for planning, development, operation, management and maintenance of coastal areas, including development of fisheries, livestock, horticulture and agriculture.

Pakistan Environmental Protection Ordinance No. XXVII

This law deals with protection, conservation and improvement of the environment for the prevention and control of pollution, including biodiversity, ecosystems, effluent, hazardous substance emission and water pollution. It also provides a provision to make rules for implementing the provisions of international environmental agreements.

Pakistan Fish Inspection and Quality Control Act, 1997

This law deals with the registration of fish processing plants and fish exporters, and constitutions and functions of the inspection committee. The function of the committee includes inspection of fish processing plants, fish exporters, and handling of fish and fishery products. It also defines the powers, duties and functions of fishery officers and penalties for contravention by processors and exporters.

Pakistan Fish Inspection and Quality Control Rules, 1998

This law provides a detailed description of conditions required for registration of processing plants for export, ice factories, fish handling on board fishing vessels, landing places, and fish processing establishments. It also provides provisions for registration of testing laboratories for seafood products, and notification of approved cleaning materials, etc.

Conservation of fisheries resources

S. R. O. 329(1)/79

In exercise of the powers conferred by section 6 of the Exclusive Fishery Zone (Regulation of Fishing) Act, 1975 (XXXII of 1975), the Federal Government declared the period commencing on 1 June and ending on 31 July to be the period during which catching of shrimps shall be prohibited within the entire area of the zone. This will reduce fishing pressure on the shrimp resources and provide an opportunity for juveniles to grow before becoming subject to fishing.

The Provincial Government of Sindh, vide section 4 of Sindh Fisheries Ordinance, 1980, declared a ban on catching of shrimp during the period of June and July.

S. R. O. 332 (1)/79

This law stipulate that no holder of a licence, fishing permit or identity card shall engage himself in catching female lobsters loaded with eggs (berried lobsters) and lobsters of 15 cm or less, and, if caught, such lobsters shall be immediately released back into the sea alive and shall not be landed or marketed.

Notification No.DD-75/98/3342-48 dated 24-07-1999

Federal Government prohibition against catching of marine turtle of all types in the EEZ beyond 12 n.mi. from the shoreline.

Notification No.3(5)SO (Fish)/91 dated 15-06-1999

Government of Sindh has made it mandatory for all shrimp trawlers having a crew of more than six persons onboard to install Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs) in their trawl nets, to minimize the accidental entrapment of turtle in shrimp trawl nets.

Notification No. SO(Fish)5(6) /AL&F/2000

Government of Sindh has authorized the Marine Security Agency (MSA) to check the use of TEDs in the provincial territorial waters and to take action upon non-compliance.

S. R. O. 739 (1)/98

The Federal Government totally forbids the export and domestic consumption of aquatic turtles and tortoises.

INLAND FISHERIES

The characteristics of freshwater capture fisheries are dominated by the Indus River and its tributaries. It starts from the mountains of northern Pakistan and is joined by four large rivers that flow through most of the extent of Punjab, and finally drain into the Arabian Sea in Sindh Province, after covering a distance of about 2 900 km. It has the largest contiguous irrigation system in the world.

Five major rivers join the River Indus. The fish fauna of the Indus system in its northern part is cold water type, while the greater middle and southern parts of the system are warm-water fisheries zones. Greater differences exist between various zones of one river than between different rivers of the same zone. River modification as a result of Indus basin development has changed almost the entire profile of the major rivers. Consequently, the fish communities in rivers have been affected more by external influences than internal events.

Capture fisheries dominate inland fisheries, and rivers and reservoirs account for more than 80 percent of total inland fish production. The riverine fishery management system is mainly based on enforcement by respective provincial fisheries departments of regulatory laws pertaining to restrictions on species catch by size, and monitoring of close seasons for fishing. In the absence of any fisheries management plan, integrated coordination the development of inland fisheries is limited.

Artificial reservoirs

There are six large reservoirs that were created in the past four decades through the construction of dams and barrages across rivers in Pakistan, which provide about 250 000 ha for fish production. In addition to these, there are several small dam reservoirs. Although the large reservoirs and barrages remains the major source of fish production, there is a continuous decline in landings. These large reservoirs are very deep and require improved harvesting technology to maintain sustainable utilization of the resources. These reservoirs are currently managed by WAPDA for fisheries production through harvest limits during certain seasons and size restrictions.

Lakes (sweet or saline) and other wetlands

In Sindh Province alone there are more than 100 natural lakes of different sizes covering an area of about 100 000 ha. Among them Lakes Halijee (1 800 ha), Kinjhar (12 000 ha) and Manchar (16 000 ha) are quite important for fish production, and Manchar alone supports 2 000 fishing families. Apart from these big lakes, a cluster of small lakes called Bakar Lake extends over 40 000 ha. The natural lakes in Punjab cover about 7 000 ha.

Some of the lakes, such as Nammal (480 ha), Ucchali (943 ha), Jahlar (100 ha), Kalar Kahar (100 ha), Kharal (235 ha) and Khabakki (283 ha), are brackish and are too saline to support aquaculture.

AQUACULTURE RESOURCES

In the Province of Punjab, 6 hatcheries and 22 nurseries have been set up in order to produce about 16 million fish seed annually for stocking and fish farming. About 5 000 fish farms, with a water area of 1 500 ha, have been established, with an annual yield potential of 2 500-3 750 kg/ha (1 000-1 500 kg per acre).

Aquaculture in Sindh involves mainly the farming of major carps in 168 fish farms with an area of 28 000 ha (70 000 acres). Fish farms are either natural depressions in waterlogged areas or excavations filled with water. Pond management is minimal and yield, even from well-constructed ponds, is low. The average annual production of fish is about 1 500-2 500 kg/ha (600-1 000 kg per acre).

In Sindh, compartments between embankments are constructed along both sides of the River Indus. These range in size from 50-5 000 ha and, after filling with water, look like fishponds in every respect.

Water is let into the compartments during the peak flood periods, which coincide with the spawning period of many species, especially the major carps. Large numbers of carp fry as well adult fish enter these compartments, millions of carp fingerlings produced by the Directorate of Fisheries (DOF) at its hatcheries and nurseries are also stocked. In a few months, the fish grow to market size. Fishermen hired by the private contractors who lease the compartments from DOF harvest the fish. The catches consist mostly of major carps and other species. Fish production and yields vary between compartments in the different areas.

Most of the fish farming referred above is warm-water fish farming, although a large part of the country lies in the subtemperate to temperate region, with arid to semi-arid climatic conditions with distinct summer and winter seasons.

Aquaculture operations in North West Frontier Province (NWFP) include an intensive raceway trout farm operation in the Swat Valley, which was constructed under the ADB-financed Aquaculture Development Project. The farm operates successfully, with an annual production of 10 000 kg of trout. The farm uses feeds formulated from locally available ingredients and this represents about 70 percent of production cost. The operation appears to be profitable. In view of the commercial demand for trout, the private sector is establishing trout farms in the Swat valley. In support of the development of the trout fisheries, DOF has established 6 hatcheries at various places in the province, with a total production of 1.15 million fry.

In Pakistan, the fish fauna is rich, with at least 200 species of freshwater fish, of which about 20 are edible. Attention has focused on only seven species, which are cultivated on a commercial scale. These are Cyprinus carpio, Labeo rohita, Catala catla, Crrihinus maigala, found throughout Pakistan, and Salmo trutta fario (brown trout), Salmo gairdnori (rainbow trout) and Tor putitora (mahseer), mostly found in northern parts. Chinese grass carp and silver carp have also been introduced in the province of Punjab.

The capital cost of constructing earthen ponds generally varies between PRs 187 500 and 250 000/ha (PRs 75 000-100 000 per acre). This cost is variable depending on a number of factors, such as farm size and the number of units built together. The cost of a pond is highest when only a one-acre (0.4 ha) pond is built. Other factors affecting the cost of constructing a pond include terrain area and availability of farm machinery from the agriculture department.

The operating costs of warm water fish culture in ponds vary depending on the level of aquaculture system. In extensive systems, fertilization is practised with no use of supplementary feed. However, in some cases organic and inorganic fertilizer is also used to enhance the carrying capacity of the system.

In highly extensive systems, fertilization is supplemented occasionally by feedstuffs that include rice polish, wheat brain, moistened dry bread, vegetables and fruit wastes. The average operational cost is about PRs 20 000-25 000/year, and with supplemental feed this cost increases to up to PRs 35 000/year.

Pakistan has not yet started coastal aquaculture, although there exists considerable potential. Efforts were made in the past to start shrimp farming along the Sindh coast, but failed. The main constraint was non-availability of shrimp seed. In order to establish coastal aquaculture in Pakistan and to overcome the problem of seed supply of marine fishes and shrimp, a hatchery complex is being established by MFD at Hawks Bay, Karachi. Once the hatchery is operational it is hoped that shrimp and finfish mariculture will start, thus helping to increase overall production and enhance exports.

ORGANIZATION OF FISHERIES INSTITUTIONS

Marine Fisheries Department

MFD is the executive fishery agency of the federal government, with primary responsibilities for ensuring management and development of fishery resources in the interest of the nation.

The principal objectives of MFD are to:

MFD is headed by a Director General, and the organizational structure is shown below.

MFD has three divisions, each headed by a Director, namely Research and Stock Assessment; Planning and Development; and Fishing Technology and Training.

The Research and Stock Assessment Division has three units: Deep-sea Fishing, Hydrologic Research and Biological Research, each headed by a Deputy Director. The Deep-sea Fishing Unit is responsible for management of deep-sea fishing vessel operations in the EEZ. The Hydrologic Research Unit is engaged in data collection of physico-chemical parameters such as salinity, temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, suspended matter and nutrients. The Biological Research Unit undertaken research relating to biology, distribution, food and feeding habits, breeding and migration patterns of commercially important finfish and shellfish inhabiting the coastal and offshore waters of the country.

The Planning and Development Division has two subdivisions: Planning and Development, and Statistics. The Planning and Development subdivision is responsible for the development of fisheries policies, identification of new development projects and coordination with governmental and non-governmental organizations. The Statistics section collects and compiles fisheries statistics, collected from provincial fisheries departments and published in the form of annual reports: Handbook of Fisheries Statistics of Pakistan.

The Fishing Technology and Training Division has three subdivisions: Gear Technology, Quality Control, and Training. The Gear Technology section studies locally fishing gear and fishing vessels and develops modern fishing gear and commercial applications. The Quality Control section is responsible for standardization and quality control of fish and fishery products. The section manages quality control laboratories, which are equipped for chemical analyses, microbiological analyses and heavy metal detection using atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The Training section has its own facility equipped with modern training equipment. The building also has lecture halls, workshops, laboratories and a dormitory. So far, the centre has been providing short-term training courses on various areas of fisheries.

There is no home page for the Marine Fisheries Department.

The Marine Fisheries Department's e-mail address is dgmfd@hotmail.com.

Fishermen's cooperative society

There is one Fishermen's Cooperative society, which is a non-governmental organization. It has a Board with 17 directors for the management of the society. The Provincial Government of Sindh elects 8 directors directly from the fishermen; the other are nominated. The main objective of the society is fishers' welfare, and it has about 18 000 members.

FUTURE DEMAND FOR FISH

The population of Pakistan is increasing rapidly, like other countries in the region. In 2001-2002, the population was 142 million and fish production for human consumption was 413 000 tonne, giving a per capita fish consumption of about 1.8 kg/year, which is far less than the accepted standards, and Pakistan is thus one of the lowest fish consuming countries in the world. Pakistanis are not fish eaters by nature; rather they depend on agriculture and livestock. To meet the acute shortage of animal protein in the country, it is essential, that efforts be directed towards development of inland fisheries in order to achieve significant increase in fish production within a reasonable short period. Special emphasis should be given to new areas, such as artificial lakes, which are vast, and have the ability to produce the additional quantity of fish needed for the country.

FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR THE FISHERIES SECTOR

Loans for the small-scale fisheries sector are provided by the Agricultural Development Bank of Pakistan (ADBP). Loan recovery is less than 10 percent (compared to 89 percent for the agriculture sector as a whole) and in most cases this is due to simple refusal to repay by fishers, coupled with local political pressure designed to obstruct seizure of securities. ADBP loans have come to be regarded as grants rather than loans that have to be repaid. ADBP is taking new steps to improve loan recovery in the fisheries sector, and these will have strong government support.