Experts on Wednesday called for sustainable fishing practices to help improve fisheries resources, besides scaling down poverty and food insecurity among fishermen communities
They said that efforts should be initiated to modernize small-scale fisheries and build the capacity of the fishermen to restore the depleting fish stocks and modify fishing methods.
This was stated by speakers at the event ‘Enhancing the Role of Small-scale Fisheries in the Blue Economy of Pakistan’ hosted by WWF-Pakistan.
They said that the participation of the local fishers should be ensured in the management of the fisheries and market-based opportunities should be created to improve their livelihood and income generation capacities.
The event was attended by officials from the Marine Fisheries Department, Sindh Fisheries Department, representatives from the National Institute of Oceanography, Karachi Fish Harbour Authority, students from Karachi University, and Bahria University, and local community members.
“Blue economy is an emerging growth and governance model which aims to combine environmental sustainability and economic value,” Muhammad Moazzam Khan, Technical Advisor, WWF-Pakistan said.
There is a need to integrate small-scale fisheries into this model, which promotes social equities and creates income generation opportunities for the fishermen.
He said that new fishing jetties should be established and equipped with modern facilities, and suggested that post-harvest losses, over-fishing, and unsustainable fishing practices should be controlled through effective regulatory mechanisms.
“We must encourage sustainable small-scale fisheries and promote income generation opportunities for the local fishers,” he added.