More than 2 million of the 18 million Bangladeshis, who came out of poverty during 2000-2010 period, managed to do so because of aquaculture, claimed by International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) while launching a book “The Making of a Blue Revolution in Bangladesh: Enablers, Impacts, and the Path Ahead for Aquaculture” in Dhaka recently.
The Washington-based organisation also claimed that the massive expansion of aquaculture in Bangladesh was a “blue revolution” in the first decade of 21st century. The book is the first comprehensive survey of the primary fish value chain in Bangladesh.
Fish production in Bangladesh soared in the past 20 years, driven mainly by aquaculture, which primarily relies on pond culture or farming in ponds. Production rose from 498,000 tonnes in 2000 to 17 lakh tonnes in 2015, said the IFPRI in the book. The share of aquaculture in fish production increased from 30 percent in 2000 to 47 percent in 2015. During the period, the sector grew at an estimated 8.6 percent.
The results of this study suggest that the impacts of aquaculture growth on income distribution and poverty reduction in Bangladesh have been substantial, even though the impact on households in the bottom income quintile have been modest.
IFPRI estimates that aquaculture’s contribution to income growth between 2000 and 2010 was 2.11 percent, including both price and quantity effects, adding that the income growth translated into an estimated poverty reduction of 1.7 percentage points nationwide.
Although the estimates seem small, they represent a large share of overall poverty reduction between 2000 and 2010: from 48.9 percent to 31.5 percent, said the IFPRI.
This implies that the growth in aquaculture has been responsible for almost 10 percent of the overall poverty reduction in Bangladesh during the first decade of the 21st century. Buoyed by growth in aquaculture, fish consumption increased to 18.1 kilogrammes in 2010 from 13.4 kg in 2000.
Contrary to assumptions that nutrient-rich foods will remain out of reach for the poor, the story of fish aquaculture in Bangladesh shows how nutrient-rich food can become more widely available for all, said Shahidur Rashid, IFPRI director for South Asia and study co-author.
Citing the use of modern fish varieties, improved farming practices, and expansion of road to rural areas and increased telecommunication access, the IFPRI said aquaculture’s transformation has been driven by improved technology, reduced transaction costs and value-chain innovation.
Commercial pond fisheries became a major source of fish production in the early 1990s, benefiting from new highly productive and profitable aquaculture fish varieties.
The yields measured by weight of some fish varieties are 13 times the yield of rice that could be grown on the same land, and revenues are several times higher. Domestic demand, fuelled by years of sustained economic growth, was “the crucial factor in transforming the fish aquaculture value chain” here.
The farmed-fish market increased 25-fold in three decades, with over 90 percent of farmed fish excluding shrimp consumed domestically, the IFPRI said, adding that rising demand and falling transportation costs contributed to growth in the domestic fish market.
The study projected that fish production would continue to grow through 2030 and would “probably outpace demand”.
As a result of increased production, prices are likely to fall, leading to benefits for poor households.
Achieving this improvement in productivity though will require targeted investments, it said.
“Despite the progress of the last 15 years, Bangladesh’s full potential for growth in aquaculture productivity has yet to be realised,” the IFPRI said.
Aquaculture productivity was only 4.26 tonnes per hectare in 2014, with a total production of 16.1 lakh tonnes on 377,968 hectares of pond land. If intensive fish farming with productivity of 100 tonnes per hectare were to be expanded to even half of Bangladesh’s pond area, there would be more than a 12-fold increase in aquaculture production, it added.
The book suggested policymakers to address the problems related to high prices of fish feed, timely availability and poor quality.
It also recommended taking steps to sell fish in the international markets, ensuring adequate regulations and data.
Planning Minister Abdul Mannan and Prime Minister’s Energy Adviser Prime Minister’s Energy Adviser Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury were present among others at the event, which was chaired by Fisheries and Livestock Secretary Raisul Alam Mondal. Senior Secretary to the Power Division Kaikaus Ahmad; Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies Director General KAS Murshid and IFPRI Country Representative in Bangladesh Akhter Ahmed also spoke.
IFPRI claimed that Bangladesh could be an excellent case study for the role of fisheries in food security for other developing countries.
