Fishing sector dev keeping fishermen under poverty line not sustainable
COUNTRY’S GDP growth has shown at a record 8.15 per cent high. So it is natural to assume that the real income of general people would see some degrees of increase keeping adjustment with such an economic expansion. But the fishermen have been experiencing that their real wages are falling due to inflation in the recent years. The purchasing capacity of the people, who tend to be low- and unskilled and poor, shrank in the previous fiscal despite the GDP growth was shown inflated. Despite booming fish production in the country, the low wage of fishermen and a huge amount of debts are responsible for their living under the poverty line. In November, inflation was 6.05 per cent, which was 1.19 percentage points higher than the nominal wage growth rate in the same month in the fishery sector. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) estimates the average monthly wage rate of low-paid and unskilled labourers in 44 occupations, including fishermen. It is well-known that the rate of poverty reduction has declined in recent years and income disparity has increased.
The fisheries sector has been earning a notable amount of foreign exchange. In 2013-14, the country earned BDT 4,776.92 crore by exporting 77.33 thousand MT of fish and fisheries products. This is the highest export earnings in the last 10 years, starting from 2017. In FY 2016-17, the sector earned BDT 4,287.64 crore by exporting almost 68.31 thousand MT of fish and fisheries products. The current volume of the annual fish feed market is around 700,000-800,000 lakh MT. In the last few years, the government distributed rice and other essentials to fishermen during the banning period. But without sustainable income, the fishermen cannot come out of poverty. To attain the SDG-1 ‘no poverty’, the government must pull out the poverty pockets in terms of professions by raising their income.
Fishing sector needs overall development in a priority basis but it doesn’t mean that fishermen would be kept out development schemes.
The fisheries sector has been earning a notable amount of foreign exchange. In 2013-14, the country earned BDT 4,776.92 crore by exporting 77.33 thousand MT of fish and fisheries products. This is the highest export earnings in the last 10 years, starting from 2017. In FY 2016-17, the sector earned BDT 4,287.64 crore by exporting almost 68.31 thousand MT of fish and fisheries products. The current volume of the annual fish feed market is around 700,000-800,000 lakh MT. In the last few years, the government distributed rice and other essentials to fishermen during the banning period. But without sustainable income, the fishermen cannot come out of poverty. To attain the SDG-1 ‘no poverty’, the government must pull out the poverty pockets in terms of professions by raising their income.
Fishing sector needs overall development in a priority basis but it doesn’t mean that fishermen would be kept out development schemes.
