Two-thirds of the world is covered by water. This means that the largest part of our planet is suitable for fish breeding excluding salty oceans and water bodies that are full of icebergs. Fish is one of the favorite or best dishes for human beings and most of the time physicians advice the public to include or have fish in of one their daily meals as well.
Indeed, fishing has been practiced in Ethiopia for many years now. Since then, averse to modern technique, traditional fishing practices have been going on in Ethiopia . As a result,the total amount of fishes that are caught by traditional fishermen are more or less insignificant in comparison with the fishery potentials of the country.
Therefore, the country has begun to familiarize the country’s fishermen with new and modern technologies of fishing in order to curb harmful fishing practices and to boost their productivity and to generate foreign currency to the country.
However, from now on a lot of work is required to utilize the untapped resources of the fisheries of the country by further strengthening the capacities of pertinent bodies in terms of using modern and latest fishing technologies.
In fact, it is a good beginning to put in place participatory fishery management system(policy) across the nation since it makes the country to use the resource properly and efficiently.
Moreover, the nation needs to have a number of world class fisheries where fishes are reserved and kept in proper manner , provide improved and modern fish- hooks in large quantity to the fishermen, and keep on supplying fishes with affordable prices to the public at large. The presence of vehicles equipped with refrigerators plays a key role in timely supplying fresh fishes to the hotels mushrooming in the country. Further more there are ornamental fishes that adorns our hotels and homes alike.
Besides, the management of fish products requires special attention since they could be easily spoiled and cause a huge financial loss .If not, the set goals of supplying quality fishes to the general people and to the world market would end up in a failure.
Likewise, before it is too late, those who engage in fishery should be conscious enough to take every necessary step towards protecting the environment while fishing and preparing for sale.
The industry of fishing has not yet attracted national and overseas businesspersons in Ethiopia as it could. Because of this phenomena a few number of fishermen or farmers are now seen actively engaged in fishing and selling fishes in very limited areas. Therefore,the government should maximize its awareness creation efforts about the industry as well as take the initiatives of opening up the market to the world.
It is true that fishery would play a great role in ensuring food security and creating job opportunities thus,the nation should massively expand modern fishing practices on the lakes ,aquariums and the like in a bid to be beneficiary of this natural resource as a whole.
Whenever we think of fish products, we should put in to consideration providing quality fishes in large number to local and international markets using the such initiatives of the government properly.
Of course, the main source of fishes are the water bodies of the nation. Hence, we should harness the resource without endangering nature. Untreated effluent from the sewerage of industries must not find their ways into water bodies to wipe out our fish resources. During rainy seasons foreign bodies too carried by flood elbow their ways into the water bodies. These bodies must not eat our lakes out of space via displacement and cast a shadow on the country’s potential for fishery.
To sum up, it is a high time to properly utilize and increase the productivity of fishing industry by containing illegal fishing using poisonous organic chemicals like Berbera ,using tightly webbed fishing nets,fishing during breeding seasons implementing modern fishing practices and by making fish market accessible to all. The country has ample fallow lands. Giving this fact, fish-farming could prove a lucrative business that could attract many investors. Many hydro power dams are being built. Such reservoirs could also be devoted for augmenting the benefit the country could derive from the industry. Fish research centers like the one in Sebeta could play quite a role in this regard.
2017 The Ethiopian Herald