An insight into Sport fishing industry in Sri Lanka; Present situation and future prospects

Abstract

Although sport fishing in Sri Lanka has a long history as a recreational activity of foreigners and local interested groups, the current status and the impact on the economy is unknown due to unavailability of systematic studies on the subject. This paper aims to discuss some insights on sport fishing industry in terms of economic performance and prospects of the tourism sector. The study describes the main characteristics and actors, and the performance and dynamics of sport fishing industry. The semi-structured interviews were held with the owners’ of 5 sport fishing centres from Negombo to Galle during October to November 2011. In addition, hoteliers and anglers also interviewed and participatory observations regarding sport fishing activities were undertaken. The nature of sport fishing activities, costs and incomes and projections were done to evaluate the performance of the industry. The study revealed that rods and hand lines are commonly used fishing equipment with lure and live prawns as baits respectively, two fishing trips are operating: morning and afternoon, the duration of a trip depends on customer request which is normally on an average 2.5 hours. Further, 60 US$ is charged per person with all facilities and equipment while those who have their own equipment charged only a boat charge which is on an average US$ 8 per trip. Moreover, total estimated direct and indirect earnings from sport fishing industry was US$ 24,793,920 in 2011 which was 3.8 percent of total earnings of the tourism industry of the country in the same year. It is argued that enhancement of the sport fishing industry will generate more income for the country which in turn helpful for the economic and social development of the country.