Freshwater Fish Farming: Aiming to expand the fish export market

In order to export more freshwater fish to foreign markets from Rakhine State, the 1,000-acre freshwater fish farming project will be implemented to complete within 2 years.

In the fish markets of neighboring countries, there is a strong demand for not only marine fish and prawn but also freshwater ones.  

Thet Oo, Head Officer, Department of Fisheries (Rakhine State) said "Neighboring country Bangladesh has a demand for freshwater fish and shrimps. Currently, Rakhine state is working on the marine fish farming, and only 420 acres of freshwater fish can be bred. 420 acres of freshwater fish farm do not meet the demand of Bangladesh. So, the freshwater fish from the farms from Yangon, Irrawaddy and Bago Regions are exported through Maungdaw, Sittwe Townships. It consumes more time and causes high cost by exporting fish and prawn from other regions and the traders also don’t get the profit they deserve. If we can run more freshwater fish farms in Rakhine State, we can export them to the Bangladesh within hours with lower costs and the buyers will get fresh fish in time."

According to the Bangladesh’s demand, it’s urging to breed freshwater fish in Rakhine State. With the support of the Rakhine State Government, a freshwater fish hatchery camp has been built in Min-Bya area in the past 6 months, which has never built before. 

The GHP Fish company intends to implement experimental breeding of freshwater fish in about 100 acres of old paddy fields around the hatchery camp and if successful, that company is to breed about 300 acres of freshwater fish in the next 2 years. That company has made a preliminary report to the Rakhine State Government, aiming to implement the Min-Bya Region as a freshwater fish farming zone. 

The Rakhine Fisheries Department is planning to expand the 1,500 marine fish farming projects and 1,000 freshwater farming projects in a total of 2,500 acres of fish farming within the next 2 years. The 1,000 acres of freshwater fish farming in that project is intended for the Min-Bya Region, which is currently being implemented.