In Nigeria, as in other developing countries, there is an increasing need for abundant sources of high-protein food to meet the protein requirements of the ever-growing population. Along with this, the supply and costs of animal protein sources such as meat, milk, and eggs remain a concern.
Fish production provides a renewable source of cheap, high-quality animal protein and is, therefore, highly emphasized as a sub-sector of agriculture. Fisheries supply not only various types of fish but also other aquatic organisms, including plants such as seaweeds and coral reefs.
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Objectives of Fisheries in Nigeria
The objectives of fisheries in Nigeria include the following:
- Increasing fish production by employing modern methods of fishing and technology.
- Improving the nutritive food value of human diets.
- Exploiting fishery resources as profitably as possible through rational exploitation for sustainable production and conservation.
- Enhancing the utilization of aquatic resources by introducing modern methods of processing and marketing facilities.
- Raising the standard of living and socio-economic status of indigenous fishermen through cooperative societies and access to fishing inputs at subsidized rates.
- Reducing the importation of fish and fish products to the barest minimum in order to conserve scarce foreign exchange.
- Increasing fish production and facilitating the exportation of fish and fish products for foreign exchange.
- Generating maximum employment for the populace.
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Fish Production in Nigeria
Fish production in Nigeria is categorized based on the source into two major groups: Capture Fisheries and Culture Fisheries.
1. Capture Fisheries: This system involves fishing in the open sea, where fish are regarded as natural resources that are freely captured without consideration for their reproduction, growth, and development. This accounts for over 90% of total domestic fish production in Nigeria. There are two sub-divisions:
2. Industrial Fisheries: This system features a higher capital/labor ratio, the use of in-board diesel engines, and the ownership of boats by entrepreneurs, with salaried crews. Industrial fisheries are characterized by a high level of organization, shore-based infrastructural facilities, and high productivity and income.
3. Small-Scale Fisheries: Small-scale fisheries employ small, traditional, often unmotorized crafts and simple hand-operated gears. It involves low capital investment and low production per unit effort. This system is further divided into Subsistence Fisheries and Artisanal Fisheries. The bulk of production (about 80%) comes from the artisanal sector.
4. Artisanal Fisheries: Artisanal fisheries are typically found in remote village fishing centers, often distant from commercial centers. This sector faces poor access to roads, inadequate preservation and processing capabilities, lack of appropriate village-level extension services, an absence of well-established marketing systems, and poor access to formal credit markets. Additionally, artisanal fisheries often lack knowledge of lending channels.
5. Culture Fisheries: Culture fisheries, also known as fish farming or aquaculture, involve the growing of fish in confined water bodies through the manipulation of water parameters and fish species to achieve desired production levels. It is akin to intensive livestock farming or the battery cage system in poultry production.
This article has outlined that the fisheries sector plays a vital role in Nigeria’s agricultural economy. Fish production in Nigeria is carried out through various techniques, including capture and culture fisheries, to meet the growing protein demand and improve the socio-economic conditions of the people.
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