RI needs economic growth-oriented marine policies: Minister

The Jakarta Post

Over half of Indonesian territory consists of water. The successful maintenance of the aquatic ecosystem will benefit not only the people who depend on it for their livelihoods, but the environment of Indonesia as a whole, if not that of the world. The Jakarta Post's Agustina Wayansari recently talked to Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Freddy Numberi about the country's marine resources and their importance to the Indonesian people.

Question: Marine resources are the most abundant natural resource in our country. How can we help this sector help the people?

Answer: We impose policies which are pro poor people to alleviate poverty, pro job provision, and pro growth, which means they are economic growth-oriented. All these policies are implemented to improve the welfare of fishermen and people in coastal areas.

We also try to contribute more to the national economy through the maritime and fishery sectors, as well as to shape quality maritime natural resources and supporting resources.

Another program is to increase the consumption of fish among the people in this country, which is still considered very low despite the fact that we're a maritime country.

In short, the development programs in the maritime and fishery sectors include: empowering fish farmers and other people active in the maritime and fishery sectors; a program for the management and development of maritime and fishery resources, and a program for the conservation and monitoring of maritime and fishery resources.

Could you elaborate on the poverty alleviation policy?

It is a policy that aims to provide jobs and alleviate poverty. I'll take catfish cultivation in the dry area of Gunung Kidul regency in Yogyakarta as an example. Considering that the demand for catfish in the province is very high, we introduced catfish cultivation in 2005 and so far it has financially benefited the community. The people, including women, have developed a number of processed foods, such as dried shredded catfish and catfish crackers.

I am pretty sure that this kind of cultivation program will be useful in eliminating poverty in coastal areas. I also believe that the program will run smoothly if we continuously motivate the people by showing them that the program will bring economic benefits; that they will get money, so they can send their children to school. In Gunung Kidul, one pond can generate between Rp 1 million (US$108.9) to Rp 1.5 million during the harvest. It takes approximately 45 days for a new batch of fish to be ready for harvest.

We also introduced this cultivation program in other regions with different fish. In Jambi, patin (big catfish) is the choice, while in Riau people like grouper. In several other regencies in Sumatra, nila (orechromis niloticus) fish is the favorite.

How big is our fishery potential? Or have we already utilized it fully?

We haven't made the most of our potential. Let's say for fisheries, that we have a potential of 6.4 million tons per year, yet we now only take 3.8 to 4.8 million tons per year.

I think this happens because we still use traditional equipment. Therefore, the ministry is running a modernization program for fishing equipment to help fishermen maximize their catches. We assist them with modern boats, nets, and other equipment. However, we have found fishermen in several places in Indonesia refuse this modernization. They prefer their old traditional boats rather than the motorized ones. This happens in Sibolga, North Sumatra.

In order to maximize the impact of modernization, we also run empowerment programs among fishermen in several places. We provide them a big boat enough for a group of 15 people. The group will be given training for management of their catches, so the fish will still be fresh when they are sold in the market. With traditional boats, fishermen go to the sea in threes and thus catch fewer fish than when they use modern boats that are equipped with better facilities.

It's rather difficult to impose this modernization policy in eastern Indonesia and we have to do it. We have no problem in Java.

That about the budget for this modernization program? Could you tell us more about the allocation?

Last year, we had Rp 2.6 trillion, while this year we have Rp 3.2 trillion.

The budget is not enough of course, but we understand and keep trying to allocate an adequate amount for the modernization program. We have managed to do it gradually and by turns in different places across the country. Recently, we granted 600 motor boats to fishermen in Padang, West Sumatra.

We hope that fishermen can increase their productivity with modern equipment because they can go fishing twice a day. With a traditional boat, they can only make one trip. So, modernization is very important.

What is this biggest problem in regards to destructive fishing practices?

I have seen that the problem lies in the regulations. We need to make better regulations that can accommodate business interests but with better rules of the game. Previously there was no regulation requiring fishing companies to build factories in Indonesia. Foreign fishing companies just caught and took the fish away from us, which was not helping to alleviate poverty in our country. Thus, we need to change the pattern, requiring the companies to open factories here because it would have more value by providing job opportunities for the people. We accommodate their business interests, but at the same time they provide job opportunities for the people and pay taxes. That's what we call a multiplier effect. I hope this policy can increase investment from countries like Taiwan, the Philippines and China.

How is progress so far?

So far so good. We have found that a number of the factories built lack raw materials because many limited their boats' activities after the fuel price increase. We are still glad, however, that our exports remain good. This year, our exports from the fishery industry have been increasing and reached US$ 3.5 billion.