TAWAU: Sabah Fish Marketing Sdn Bhd (Safma) is expanding its field visits to better understand the actual needs of local fishermen and strengthen the State’s fisheries industry.
The proactive move aims to ensure the welfare and livelihood of fishermen are supported through a more efficient and comprehensive industry supply chain.
Safma General Manager Burhan Japar said the company conducted a special visit to several fishing equipment shops along Jalan Pasar here to assess the available equipment and identify the fishermen’s needs.
“Our visit this morning was to see for ourselves the types of devices and fishing equipment currently available in the Tawau market.
“It also serves as a platform to identify the pressing needs among fishermen in the district,” he said during the visit.
Burhan said efforts to develop Sabah’s fisheries industry should not focus solely on marketing seafood products.
Instead, he said, the team needed to look at the bigger picture involving the entire industry chain, including logistics facilities for fishermen.
He said the availability of suitable and sufficient equipment was an important foundation before catches could be optimised for the domestic market.
“Fishermen are among the key players in the country’s food supply chain and cannot be left out of any industry planning.
“Hence, we need to go to the ground to understand their needs and identify areas that can be explored to help increase productivity,” he said.
Burhan said the field visits were also expected to have a positive impact on efforts to increase the fishermen’s net income.
“Safma is committed to looking at the development of the fisheries sector holistically, from the welfare of fishermen to the delivery of products to consumers.
“Tawau also has significant geographical potential in the fisheries sector, which could drive the local economy if managed properly.
“However, efforts to strengthen the industry cannot be undertaken by Safma alone and require close cooperation among various stakeholders,” he said.
