Commerce Desk
Karachi, September 23, 2026: Mian Zahid Hussain, President of the Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum and Chairman of the FPCCI Policy Advisory Board, said Pakistan’s seafood exports could reach $2 billion through a clear strategy, modern technology, and value addition. Seafood exports stood at $568 million last fiscal year, up 38% over two years, with China absorbing 59% of the total. Yet despite a 1,000-km coastline and a 240,000-sq-km Exclusive Economic Zone, Pakistan holds just 0.29% of the $195 billion global seafood market, ranking 34th worldwide with production growth of only 1.1% annually — far behind India (5.8%), Peru (4.3%) and Vietnam (3.7%).
He identified key obstacles: weak traceability and certification, lack of boat registration, poor enforcement of food safety standards, overfishing, and inadequate harbours, cold storage, and financing. He urged Pakistan to move beyond traditional fishing toward a modern, export-oriented blue economy — with better federal-provincial coordination, full catch traceability, world-class certification, and easier financing. Shifting from raw fish exports to processed, frozen, and value-added products, he said, would open new global markets. FPCCI stands ready to offer policy proposals to support investment and boost exports through modernization and shrimp farming.
