Staff Reporter :
The government has decided to initiate pearl farming in the country to tap the prospect of export earning from the valuable gemstone produced by oysters under specific conditions.
Sources at Fisheries and Livestock Ministry said the government is going to sign a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with the government of Vietnam in this regard as the Southeast Asian country on the South China Sea expressed their interest to provide Bangladesh in pearl farming.
A five-member high-profile delegation, led by Fisheries and Livestock Minister Muhammed Sayedul Hoque, visited Vietnam from March 15 to 20, to discuss the prospect of pearl farming.
During the visit, the Bangladeshi delegation had a bilateral meeting with Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam Cao Duc Phat. The Vietnamese minister assured Bangladesh of providing technological support as well as high pearl-yielding variety of mussel to help it start pearl cultivation.
Sayedul said Vietnam has been cultivating pearl commercially in freshwater and the mussels are bigger in size than those of Bangladesh. “We’ll import high-yielding variety of mussels from Vietnam,” the minister added.
Earlier, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the two countries in 2012 when Vietnam assured Bangladesh of providing support for pearl farming.
Encouraged by the success of China, Japan, the Philippines, Vietnam and India in pearl cultivation, Prime Minister Shiekh Hasina earlier directed the authorities concerned to take initiatives for pearl farming in Bangladesh.
Following the PM’s directive, Bangladesh Fisheries Research Institute (BFRI) launched a five-year government-financed development project from July 2012-June 2017 involving Tk 1,562 lakh to discover a durable technology to cultivate pearl in the country.
BFRI also conducted a survey across the country in order to identify high quality mussels that can produce pearl.
Following the survey, five species of freshwater mussels have been identified, including Lamellidens marginalis, Lamellidens corrianus, Lamellidens phenchooganjensis, Lamellidens jenkinsianus and Pilyroconcha exilis, while the first two species can produce more pearls compared to the latter ones.
The scientists also managed to find out a method under which mussels can be induced to produce up to 10-12 pearls of 3-5 mm radius in that method.
The government has decided to initiate pearl farming in the country to tap the prospect of export earning from the valuable gemstone produced by oysters under specific conditions.
Sources at Fisheries and Livestock Ministry said the government is going to sign a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with the government of Vietnam in this regard as the Southeast Asian country on the South China Sea expressed their interest to provide Bangladesh in pearl farming.
A five-member high-profile delegation, led by Fisheries and Livestock Minister Muhammed Sayedul Hoque, visited Vietnam from March 15 to 20, to discuss the prospect of pearl farming.
During the visit, the Bangladeshi delegation had a bilateral meeting with Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam Cao Duc Phat. The Vietnamese minister assured Bangladesh of providing technological support as well as high pearl-yielding variety of mussel to help it start pearl cultivation.
Sayedul said Vietnam has been cultivating pearl commercially in freshwater and the mussels are bigger in size than those of Bangladesh. “We’ll import high-yielding variety of mussels from Vietnam,” the minister added.
Earlier, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the two countries in 2012 when Vietnam assured Bangladesh of providing support for pearl farming.
Encouraged by the success of China, Japan, the Philippines, Vietnam and India in pearl cultivation, Prime Minister Shiekh Hasina earlier directed the authorities concerned to take initiatives for pearl farming in Bangladesh.
Following the PM’s directive, Bangladesh Fisheries Research Institute (BFRI) launched a five-year government-financed development project from July 2012-June 2017 involving Tk 1,562 lakh to discover a durable technology to cultivate pearl in the country.
BFRI also conducted a survey across the country in order to identify high quality mussels that can produce pearl.
Following the survey, five species of freshwater mussels have been identified, including Lamellidens marginalis, Lamellidens corrianus, Lamellidens phenchooganjensis, Lamellidens jenkinsianus and Pilyroconcha exilis, while the first two species can produce more pearls compared to the latter ones.
The scientists also managed to find out a method under which mussels can be induced to produce up to 10-12 pearls of 3-5 mm radius in that method.
