The Nigerian Fisheries sub-sector received a major boost recently as the country was listed among the top fishing economies. According to a report by the Fishery Committee For the West Central Gulf of Guinea (FCWC) which relied on data provided by the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), “Uganda is ranked sixth on the list, Tanzania eighth and Nigeria ninth in the category of the World’s top inland water capture nations.”
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The list which is an indication of the growing role that fish farming plays as a vital source of Economic opportunities, livelihood and nutrition for the listed countries, is traditionally compiled based on the quantity of fish captured in their inland waters – lakes and rivers. It underscored that this was achieved despite the fact that these countries still combine modern and traditional methods of fishing in the past decades.
Available data shows that fish captured by Nigeria has increased compared to the last decades as demand jumped both locally and internationally. However the report complained about the management of fish stocks emphasizing the need for replenishing. In this regard, the FAO advises that sustainable fishing practices must be adopted and ecological balance of the lake and river ecosystems must also be maintained.
The report stated further that in 2011, Nigeria captured 301,281 tonnes of Fish and in 2012 312,009 tonnes of Fish which is 3.6 percent growth in the number of fish captured in the years under review. It however called on the country’s fisheries managers to evolve policies which will foster the practice of efficient fish management as this will avert any possible decline in projected fish production and forestall a downturn in production which could deny the Country a healthy source of nutrition and sustainable foreign exchange earning medium.