The
Ministry of
Agriculture denied on Monday an allegation that Chinese
officials inflate fishing output statistics, but the ministry vowed
nonetheless to improve the methodology for collecting such
statistics.
Canadian scientists Reg Watson and Daniel Pauly reported last month
that global fish resources are declining while the global fish
output announced by the Food and
Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has been
increasing.
The duo claimed the cause of the increase is that some countries,
especially China, reported magnified fishery output to the UN. They
alleged that local officials in China consider fishery output
growth as a kind of political achievement and thus tend to
exaggerate it in the hope of gaining a position promotion.
But Bureau of Fisheries Director-General Yang Jian denied such
claims, insisting the fishery output is done according to the
country's statistical laws. The publicized numbers have been
"basically correct," Yang said.
The country's large fishery output is a result of the rapid
development of the country's fishing industry and new seafood
products cultivated in China, he said.
The number of motorized fishing boats nationally was 289,682 last
year, up from 49,769 in 1980, bureau figures show.
Still, Yang rejected the scientists' claims by explaining that
fishery output is not a significant enough part of the economy to
make officials believe they could receive promotions from its
success.
"Fishery accounts for very little in local economies in China," he
said.
Yang also discussed the government's efforts to protect domestic
fishery resources.
The government is controlling the manufacture of motorized fishing
boats and will lower the number in the water by 30,000 by 2006,
Yang said.
And China's fishery output last year experienced a decrease of
about 1.35 per cent, Yang added.
(China
Daily December 18, 2001)