Development Of Capture Fisheries Entrepreneurs
By Ahmed Shaheeb

Bandar Seri Begawan - A Lecture on the Development of Capture Fisheries Entrepreneurs in Brunei was held yesterday at UBD's Central Lecture Theatre.

Delivered by a lecturer from the Akademi Pengajian Brunei (APB), it highlighted that the related sectors play an important role in providing the main source of protein cheaply in Southeast Asia and the world in general.

This is also evident from a research done by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) that has found one billion of the populations in Asian countries rely heavily on fish as their main source of protein, with 60 per cent of the world's population also making fish as their main source of protein. Brunei Darussalam is not excluded from this statistics and on average, the estimated annual fish requirement in the Sultanate exceeds 1,500 metric tonnes, which also makes it among the countries that have the highest per capita need for fish in the region (about 47kg per year).

Brunei has implemented a number of steps to develop fishing entrepreneurship through three sectors - Capture Fisheries, Aquaculture and Seafood Processing.

In trying to meet the high demand for fish, the Bruneian government as the main facilitator has also employed strategies and steps to develop the Capture Fisheries entrepreneurship, bound not only by the output level, but also includes the landing and marketing stages.

Financial assistance is given through SKP or SKM. Through these schemes, entrepreneurs have been able to expand by using the various dragnet and submersible vessels. At the same time, budding entrepreneurs could also establish small fishing companies.

The government has given an opportunity for local entrepreneurs and foreign investors to invest by providing joint efforts with local authorities to run commercial fishing initiatives.

The success is more evident in smaller initiatives. Even though the level of catch output could reach the 80 per cent mark from the Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) total, it can only fulfil 50 per cent of the demand at the fish market in Brunei.

This has resulted in the country having to import fish from the neighbouring countries, so there is room for improvements. -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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