Gwadar fishery delegation visits China's Fujian

BEIJING, Oct. 18 (China Economic Net) - Recently, a five-member Gwadar fishery delegation visited China's Fujian province for a six-day exchange study at the invitation of the Economic Daily-China Economic Net.

The delegation consisted of Abdul Basit Albaloshi, Managing Director of R&R Fisheries Factory, Nagman, General Manager of Gwadar Fish Factory, Shah Akmal, Sales and Marketing Director of Pakistan Gold Star Seafood Company, and other two guests visited leading aquaculture, distant-water fishing, and aquatic product processing companies in Fujian Province from October 10 to 15. They visited Fujian Minwell Industrial Co., Ltd., Fuzhou Honglong Ocean Aquatic Products Co., Ltd., Hong Dong Pelagic Fishery Co., Ltd., Ming Cheng Aquatic Products Co., Ltd., and Ming Xiang Group. 

In Fuding City, Chairman Fang Xiu of Fujian Minwell Industrial Co., Ltd. received the delegation and arranged two-day visit and exchange activities.

At the Bass Cultural Museum, the guests were impressed by the fishing tools used by Chinese fishermen in the past. These tools were abandoned by Chinese fishermen decades ago, but are still used by Gwadar fishermen. 

Guests from Gwadar fishery delegation visit the Bass Cultural Museum. [Photo/Wang Zhongqiang]

The General Manager of Gwadar Fish Factory expressed that, the fishery in Gwadar Port basically represents the first-rate fishery technology of Pakistan. However, their fishermen still use the fishing tools abandoned by Chinese fishermen. Their deep-processing technology of aquatic products only contains simple processes, including "fishing - cleaning - cutting - packaging", which restricts their deep-processing of fishes like tuna. Their added value is not high, and the competitiveness is not strong. They hoped to seize this opportunity to learn from advanced refrigeration, fresh-keeping, and deep-processing technologies of China so that they could teach their domestic fishermen more advanced production techniques, improve the original production methods, and strive for a qualitative leap in the fishery industry of Pakistan.

At the symposium, Deputy General Manager Wang Qing of Fujian Minwell Industrial Co., Ltd. introduced that, the company is shifting its single aquaculture model to diversified industrial development in terms of the bass industry. The output value of the upstream and downstream industrial chain is immeasurable. China-Pakistan friendship is higher than mountains, deeper than the ocean, harder than steel, and sweeter than honey. Fujian Minwell Industrial Co., Ltd. is willing to provide technologies and equipment to the Pakistani side, but also looks forward to further cooperation between the two sides and more mutually beneficial and win-win results in the fishery cooperation.

Guests from Gwadar fishery delegation exchange views with Chairman Fang Xiu of Fujian Minwell Industrial Co., Ltd. [Photo/Wang Zhongqiang]

Deputy General Manager Wang Lixia of Fujian Minwell Industrial Co., Ltd. accompanied the delegation to visit fry rearing and aquaculture bases. Especially, the guests visited a national-level bass breeding farm, a key laboratory of bass breeding in Fujian Province, and new plastic deep-water net cage aquaculture fish rafts. Wang answered their doubts about breeding and aquaculture technologies in detail.

Guests from Gwadar fishery delegation visit the new plastic deep-water net cage aquaculture fish rafts in Fuding city of Fujian Province. [Photo/Wang Zhongqiang]

During the stay in Fujian, Director Xiao Mengjie of High Sea Fishery Department, the China Distant Water Fishery Association, and relevant responsible persons of the Fujian Distant Water Fishery Promotion Association accompanied the delegation to visit leading distant water fishing and aquatic product processing enterprises and held a symposium on fishery cooperation. During their visit to Shishi, Zhu Qiping, the Secretary of the CPC Committee of Shishi City, Deputy Mayor Li Bin, and Former Deputy Mayor Hong Weilu attended the relevant activities.

Guests from Gwadar fishery delegation pose for a group photo with staff from the China Ocean Fisheries Association. [Photo/Wang Zhongqiang]

The delegation visited workshops of enterprises, ports, docks, and refrigerating chambers to learn about production scale and operational mode of enterprises, deep-processing of aquatic products, cold chain logistics, sales, and trade. 

After visiting the latest large-scale fishing vessels with frozen facilities of the China Distant Water Fishery Association, members of the delegation highly recognized China's fishing technologies and asked about costs, specifications, and time of sailing of large fishing vessels in detail. 

In terms of refrigeration, the delegation saw advanced equipment, such as high-power ammonia machine, ice-making workshop and new cold storage, and compared them with those of Gwadar in all aspects. 

The Pakistani side held that, through this field visit to the industrial chains of fishing, cold chain logistics, and deep-processing of Fujian Province, they are full of expectations for the prospect of fishery cooperation between the two sides. They would further strengthen communication and exchange, accelerate project cooperation, and endeavor to achieve substantive results as soon as possible. 

Fujian enterprises deemed that, with this visit as a new starting point, they would deepen mutual understanding and carry out joint ventures and cooperation in a larger scope and in more fields to achieve win-win development.

Guests from Gwadar fishery delegation visit fish processing factories in Shishi City of Fujian Province. [Photo/Wang Zhongqiang]

The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is a vital pilot project of the "Belt and Road" Initiative. Gwadar Port and Free Trade Zone are leading projects of the Corridor. The Chinese construction companies actively develop public welfare undertakings during the project construction to benefit the local people. 

While pushing media cooperation and exchanges between China and Pakistan, the Economic Daily-China Economic Net actively gives play to its role of bridge to promote the economic cooperation between the two sides. This visit of the Gwadar fishery enterprises to China is another activity stimulating the economic cooperation between the two countries following the Pakistani Mango Festival jointly held by the Economic Daily-China Economic Net, Pakistani fruit import and export enterprises, and the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Beijing in Beijing. 

During the delegation's stay in China, Editor-in-chief Cui Jun of China Economic Net and members of the delegation had a symposium. Deputy General Manager Li Li accompanied the delegation to participate in all the activities.

Agriculture and fisheries are priority industries in Pakistan at this stage, and are also the focus of cooperation in the fields of industry and people's livelihood in the next phase of the China-Pakistan economic corridor.

The activity was strongly supported by the Consulate-General of the People's Republic of China in Karachi, the China Fisheries Association, the China Distant Water Fishery Association, China Overseas Ports Holding Company (COPHC, the operator of Gwadar Port and Free Trade Zone), and Hongshan Taiye Investment Management co., Ltd.. VSH, a most influential Baluchi TV station in Pakistan, assisted in organizing this activity.