Stakeholders caution FG on plan to curb fish imports
The Federal Government’s plan to reduce fish importation into the country by 25 percent per annum via quota, or by significantly increasing duties on the commodity, so as to reduce imports, has many pitfalls and does not appear to have been well thought out, some indudustry stakeholders say.
“A ban or increased duty on fish will cause severe shortages which will compound the current 2.6 million tons shortfall in Nigeria, even after 600,000 tons of local production,” one Lagos-based analyst said.
Government’s plan may also not have taken into consideration, the fact that many fish species, such as Mackerel (Titus), Herring (Shawa) Horse Mackerel (Kote) and Blue Whiting (Panla), which it seeks to substitute, cannot grow well in Nigeria, Businessday gathered.
“Nobody bans an essential import simply because local production potential exist,” another analyst said, adding that “we should not consider a ban, unless and until we are near self-sufficiency.
“We should not increase the duty on fish imports, as this will only increase food inflation in the country, as we are still largely dependent on imports,” said another.
Other pitfalls in the plan seen by stakeholders, include the inadvertent opening up of
channels for profiteering by the well-connected, due to market failure; increased smuggling, the potential to corrupt port officials and an increasing risk of disease in domestic fish farming.
To mitigate the problem, government should work with key industry stakeholders to formulate a new fishery policy for Nigeria. The current regulations on fish importation should also be reviewed, the industry stakeholders pointed out.
Other steps that need to be taken to tackle the problem, include banning only the importation of farmed fish into the country, to encourage local fish farmers, using tax rebates as incentives for increased local production, and subsidising quality fish seeds, according to the analysts.
The government may also establish a fisheries development fund, from which fish farmers can draw loans at no more than single digit interest rates.
Nigeria spent over N100 billion on fish imports in 2010 according to Minister of Agriculture, Akinwunmi Adesina. The Federal Government’s proposed new fish policy, according to the minister, is in order to reduce the drain on foreign reserves, as well as to boost food security and job creation.
The plan specifically calls for a phased ban on fish imports over four years, and the jerking up of import duty from 10 percent to 50 percent, or 100 percent. It would also compel fish importers to have fish farms locally.
However analysts fear such a ban would have very adverse effects on the Nigerian fish market and the consuming population, if not well handled.
Nigeria’s population of 170 million people may grow to over 210 million by 2020, while the demand for fish in the country is expected to grow by over 700,000 tons over the same period, according to the United Nations. This means shortfalls will persist in the interim, before local production can ramp up to meet rising demand.
The proposed ban may worsen the already poor protein intake of Nigerians, as fish currently constitutes about 41 percent of the total animal protein intake by the average Nigerian.
“Even with importation, FAO figures show that Nigeria’s fish consumption is less than half of the world average. The effects of a ban are best imagined,” another Lagos-based analyst said.
While over 70 percent of Nigerians live below the poverty line, a ban or increased duty may cause the price of fish to skyrocket. One kilogramme of catfish produced within the country, goes for at least N400 while some imported fish species of the same size can still be bought for N100, BusinessDay’s investigations show.
Global fish consumption is 18.7 kilos per person, while Nigerian consumption falls seriously short at 7.5 kilos per person, so Nigeria currently has a 11.2 kilo fish consumption shortfall per person, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).