The Hon. Ajith Gihan

¶ 01 Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to speak on the Vote of the Ministry of Fisheries, Aquatic Resources and Marine Resources. Our Government has allocated fairly for the fisheries sector in this Budget.

¶ 02 Listening to the Opposition, one wonders who is speaking—they occupied these Ministries for decades, gilded their chairs and wrecked the institutions. Now they demand that we fix everything in four months. We presented a plan to the people; we never promised miracles in four months. Please allow orderly proceedings and avoid heckling.

¶ 03 Regarding institutions under this Ministry: Sri Lanka’s maritime zone is vast—about 517,000 sq. km with a 200 km EEZ. There are 5,488 multi-day vessel owners; 318,470 people are directly employed in coastal fisheries; about 1.1 million derive income directly, and around 2.7 million indirectly rely on the sector. Was it our four months that destroyed this sector?

¶ 04 As Hon. Wedaarachchi noted, a multi-day trip now costs Rs. 7–8 million. Who raised fuel prices then? Kerosene once at Rs. 87 a litre—what is it now? In the past, when fishermen in Chilaw asked for fuel relief, they were shot and killed. Shameful. Taxes on gear were raised; institutions were stuffed with cadres and indebted. We now have to pay those debts, which affects engine, resin, net and gear prices. We are bringing rule-based management and a budget to revive fisheries.

¶ 05 The National Aquaculture Development Authority’s mandate and domestic consumption goals were neglected. North Sea Ltd. and Cey-Nor Foundation were run down; net factories collapsed under debt. We are crafting a plan to revive what you destroyed, including prawn aquaculture and inland fisheries, once major dollar earners, especially in Puttalam, which has since declined and even resorted to re-exporting. Those who ruined it now lecture us. We are different—we will clean this up. Give us time; within a year you will see fair, technology-enabled progress in fisheries. Thank you.