Harnessing ornamental fisheries resources for sustainable growth and development: A trade perspective from Kerala, India

Ornamental fish trade has gained paramount importance with more than 125 countries involved in the freshwater and marine fishes. The global trade is estimated to be around US $ 450 million registering a growth rate of ten percent since 2001. Asia caters up to 60 per cent of the global trade while India stands with a dismal 0.9 per cent with a portfolio of 30-35 fresh water species. The ornamental fish resources of Kerala has huge potential with untapped and unexploited resources. However the performance of the sector is not worthy and production is much below the demand. The SWOL analysis - Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Limitations analysis - is done to analyse the status of ornamental fish industry in Kerala. The results indicated that good export market, high demand, availability of under-utilized marine resources, potential for rural development, low cost effort, efficiency of ornamental fish marketers, institutional support for development and promotions were the major strengths. Dependence on wild caught species, inadequate data on resources, wastage of resources, unwillingness towards marine fishes, lack of trained/ skilled manpower and organized trade, lack of adept technologies, poor marketing facilities, backwardness in international market, weak market image and lack of fishing regulations were the major inherent weaknesses. The major opportunities were enhancement of species portfolio, increasing market value, less capital intensive, high popularity and demand, breeding and culture of indigenous fishes, faster market growth, entry to new market destinations, increased awareness of international buyers and support of government. Technological backwardness, technology transfer, insufficient awareness programmes, adverse government policies, competitions from neighboring countries, sustainability of resources and drastic drop in fish prices were the major limitations. The study suggests concerted efforts by the different stakeholders to enhance the production of the sector