Fisheries Malaysia Director-General Datuk Ahmad Sabki Mahmud said on July 24 at the opening ceremony of the National Key Economic Area (NKEA) Agriculture briefing that Sarawak, Malaysia, had the potential to become the leading producer of fish like Norway and Holland, given its large tracts of land and water area for the development of commercial aquaculture.
“If a small country like Norway and Holland can become global supplier of fish, Sarawak too can be like them given its vast tracts of land and water as compared to the two countries,” he said.
He said the Fisheries Department had identified at least two sites, covering a total area of 8,567ha, under the Sarawak Aquaculture Master Plan.
He said the proposed Master Plan had an aim to changing the fisheries sector from a traditional project into a business venture to be activated by the private sector.
The private sector in Sarawak has been urged to invest in commercial aquaculture to help increase fish production for both domestic and global needs.
He said that investing in commercial aquaculture was a worthy undertaking given the increasing demand for fish.
He expressed confidence that if the government and the private sector could work together, the goal to produce sufficient fish for both domestic consumption and export market could be achieved in 2020.
