Malawi is losing $28 million (about MK4.6 billion) worth of fisheries resources each year due to unsustainable fishing in natural bodies, an estimate which represents 0.8 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), according to the Ministry of Finance and Development’s Economic valuation of Sustainable Natural Resource Use report in Malawi.
The report, released over the weekend, says aquaculture production is still very low, staggering at around 2000 tonnes per annum, and contributing only about 2 percent of the total fish production of Malawi each year.
It says due to a multiplicity of factors (increasing population, declining stocks, overfishing, increase exportation, among other), there has been a marked decline in per capita fish consumption in recent 45 years.
Per capita consumption was at 9.4 kg in 1990, but declined to 5.4 kg by 2008. Unless mitigating interventions are fully supported and implemented, consumption might decline to zero in 23 years.
Fish has been traditionally the most affordable source of protein among most Malawian, especially for the rural communities. Fish prices have significantly increased from MK52 per kilogram (US$0.54) in 2003 to MK116 per kilogram (US$0.83) in 2007, making fish less affordable to more people that before.
It is very likely that many people simply reduce their protein intake when faced with steep increases in real fish prices. It is estimated that around 66% of the Malawian population does not consume the minimum protein calories required, the reports said.
Fisheries resources contribute to the livelihoods of more than 1.6 million Malawians. Almost 60,000 individuals are employed as fishers, and about 450,000 are engaged in fisheries-related economic activities.
However, these and many other official figures on fisheries have not been revised for some time, reflecting the data gaps that exist in the sub-sector, as in all natural resources.
The landed value of fish was MK9.4 billion (US$67.1 million) in 2008, a significant contribution to the economy’s total output. Traditionally, fish has been the most affordable source of animal protein, but the real price of fish (after accounting for inflation) has increased by about 3.5 times over the period
1987 2007.
Over the same period, the population of Malawi grew by about 61 percent from 7.9 million to about 12.7 million, while total fish supply has fallen by 20 percent.
The poor are least able to replace this lost source of protein. Rural households may switch to more costly and demanding alternatives in the form of keeping livestock. Those without this option have to spend an increasing proportion of their scarce income on substitutes, or make do without the protein, reads part of the report.
As around 66 percent of the population does not even consume the minimum calories required, the report says it is very likely that these mainly rural people simply reduce their protein intake when faced with steep increases in real fish prices.
Between 1987/88 and 1995 the fisheries sub-sector experienced a sharp decline in production from natural waters but this trend experienced something of a reversal between 1998 and 2007. However, the experience has varied within segments of the fisheries industry.
The artisanal catch in Lake Malawi had recovered fully by 2004 and now exceeds the 1987 level while the catch has declined over the period in all other types of fishing.
While the output of cultured species, valued at US$ 1.4 million in 2008, has grown by 52 percent over the period 2000 – 2008, it still only contributes about 2 percent of total fish production and is very far from meeting the excess demand for fish.
The report, apart from over-fishing and rapid population growth, has found that climate change is affecting the sustainability of aquaculture production as increase in drought frequency may affect the life span of the ponds by accelerating their drying up.
Among the recommendation, the report says there should be concerted efforts towards restoration of the degraded environment for fish breeding and growth in order to assist recovery of fishery resource and a need to develop models relating to biophysical and chemical nutrient effects to fisheries.
Africa Interactive 2011