The Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (KP) Sakti Wahyu Trenggono said that the potential for marine products from Maluku, which is in zone 3, reached 3.9 million tons with a value of IDR 117 trillion. "The potential (Maluku Province) is very large, so if it is calculated from the fish that is allowed to be taken it is approximately IDR 117 trillion," said Sakti at the Business and Investor Forum held by the Maluku Provincial Government in Makassar, South Sulawesi, Saturday (5/2/ 2022). The Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries through a quota-based measurable fishing policy divides Indonesian waters into six zones, one of which is zone three which consists of nine provinces. The nine provinces are Maluku, parts of North Maluku, West Papua, Papua, North Sulawesi, Gorontalo, Central Sulawesi, Southeast Sulawesi, East Nusa Tenggara. "This will support Maluku to become a national fish barn. I hope that IDR 117 trillion of fishery potential is actually implemented in the region, so that Maluku will become one of the centers of high economic growth from the labor sector and others," explained Sakti.
He said that with the great marine potential, KKP has divided the fish quota prepared for investors to local fishermen. The fish quota that will be given to domestic and foreign investors is 2.6 million tons per year and for local fishermen it is 268,800 tons per year. In zone three there is an area devoted to traditional fishermen as a limited fishing zone. The KKP gives local fishermen a quota of 168,700 tons per year. "The quota will only be given to fishermen, so in these waters the fish can only be taken by traditional fishermen, investors cannot enter because they can use large boats while the area is for breeding fish," he explained. Sakti said that the world market in the fisheries and marine sector in 2020 reached USD 150 billion, while the export value of Indonesian fishery products only reached USD 5.2 billion, or 3.5% of the market share. "So this is a challenge and an opportunity that Sakti considers to be filled with Indonesian fishery products," he said. Meanwhile, Eastern Indonesia has great potential. The commodities with economic value that we can develop are shrimp, tuna, tuna, skipjack, squid, octopus, small crab, lobster and seaweed.
