Prospects of fish farming in developing countries

Economic Review, April, 1991 by M.M. Nazri

Nepal's Fishery Project

The Asian Development Bank has approved a SDR 9.092 million ($11 million) concessional loan and technical assistance grant to Nepal for the Second Aquaculture Development Project. The greatest potential for increasing fish production lies in the culture of fish in ponds in the Terial (low-lying area), where the climate, topography and soil condition are farourable. At full development, the Project will result in an incremental fish production of about 4,300 metric tons, which will increase Nepal's per capita fish supply from 400 grams to 530 grams per year compared to 7.1 kilograms in Bangladesh, 27.3 kilograms in the Philippines and 43 kilograms in Malaysia.

System of Fresh Water

Fish Culture Carp Culture

The major cultivated fishes all over the world belong to the carp family. There are 3 major systems of carp culture such as Chinese system where Chinese carps are cultured together, the Indo-Pak system where the Indo-Pak major carps are cultured and the European system where the main species cultured, and the European system where the main species cultured is the common carp.

The major carps such as catla (Catla catla), rohu (Labeo rohita) and mrigal (Cirrhinus mrigala) are the main cultivated species in Indo-Pak. They are more riverine in character in the sense that they do not ordinarily breed in confined waters. Hence, for culture purposes, their young ones were and are still collected during the monsoon season from the flooded rivers or in the vicinity of which fishes breed. Since it is difficult to segregate them species-wise at the time of their collection, their mixture along with undesirable species are stocked in the ponds. This practice eventually gave rise to the system of mixed culture of carps, i.e. polyculture, the scientific basis of which has been realized recently. This system of culture aims at raising proper number of mixed species of fish that are compatible and are able to convert all types of food materials a pond can produce, into fish protein, as cheaply and efficiently as possible.

Export of Fish & Fish
Preparations from Pakistan
           Value                 Quantity
Year      (Rs. in million)   (in m.m.m.Kg)
1985-86              1,335          35.9
1986-87              1,930          39.9
1987-88              2,186          43.6
1988-89              2,096          47.1
Source: Economic Survey 1989-90

Fish Hatchery at Tarbela

Dam Reservoir

According to a WAPDA press release issued at the end of 2nd week of March 1991, that WAPDA has planned to establish its own independent fish hatchery at Tarbela Dam Reservoir for producing 4 Million Fish Finger-Lings per annum. The hatchery has been planned on the recommendation of international Fishery experts from FAO and UNDP. Then new Development Programme for fisheries is going to Commence from next Financial Year. After completion the Hatchery will produce 850 tonnes Fish protein per annum, Gulfam and Silver Carp being the major component.

WAPDA Fisheries is currently stocking, 75,000 Fish Finger-Lings annually due to limited availability of seed. In order to optimize the Fish Production and to utilize its bio-potential fully, 1.9 million fish finger-Lings will be stocked yearly in the Reservoir. It has been reported that one of the Netted out Silver Carps last week showed five kilogram, which indicated that the growht of Silver Carp was encouraging as positive parameter of the Scientific production.