Investing in the fishing industry

Ahmad Shabery (third from left, front row) inspecting the fishes that had just been unloaded during his visit to the LKIM jetty in Kuantan. —Bernama

KUANTAN: Fishermen in Kuantan will benefit from an allocation of RM1.73mil to upgrade the Fisheries Development Authority of Malaysia (LKIM) Complex and the infrastructure, said Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek.

He said public facilities at the complex, which includes the water tank, substation, pipeline and Kuantan Slipway (a ramp for boats to move to and from land), will see improvement.

The allocation will also include the upgrade of the fishermen’s market in Balok near here, the building of a new fishermen’s market at Tanjung Agas near Pekan and a new artificial reef in the waters of Pahang.

“The upgrade of these facilities in the complex is very important to ensure fishing activities run fast and smooth, and continue to ensure the supply of marine food in the country,” said Ahmad Shabery during a visit to the LKIM Complex here.

“The upgrade of facilities such as the water tank and pipeline system of the complex will double the water capacity to 40,000 gallons.”

He added that there was also a need to increase the number of boat cradles and improve the slipways to meet the demands of vessel owners, which will benefit the 1,500 complex users.

He said the jetty here was important as Pahang had contributed more than 120,000 tonnes (32%) of marine food out of the nation’s more than 381,000 tonnes for 2016.

He said from 2015 to 2016, the amount of marine food from Pahang had increased by 7.4% and hoped that the increasing trend would continue.

Ahmad Shabery added that the artificial reef to be built would cost RM300,000 and benefit 1,300 fishermen in Kuantan.

“The artificial reef will help increase fishermen’s catch as it will become a protected area for fish to breed.”

In addition, Ahmad Shabery said he would propose two or three places in the nation which could become a potential fish town for tourism, with Kuantan as one of them, in the 12th Malaysia Plan.

He likened the fish town to Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco in the United States.

“We want to create a fish town modelled after the ones in Australia and America where people can go and eat fresh marine food,” said Ahmad Shabery.

“What is missing now are the many cafes and restaurants where tourists can go to. These will add value to tourism.

“We would like it to be like San Francisco, where the day and night life is very lively.”

Ahmad Shabery said Kuantan was a good option because of the business and crowd at the fishermen’s jetty here.