Speakers at a seminar in the city Saturday emphasised a common system for leasing out government water bodies among poor fish farmers to create employment opportunities in rural areas, reports UNB.

They said it is necessary to adopt a poverty and environment- friendly policy on government water body management system through inter-ministerial coordination.

They were addressing the seminar titled 'Government Water Body: the Potential Source of Poverty Reduction, Nutritional Food Supply and Increase Rural Employment' at CIRDAP Auditorium in the city.

They also called for creating a database of water bodies as those are being misused or grabbed for lack of inter-ministerial coordination.

Fisheries and Livestock Minister Abdul Latif Biswas and Land Minister Rejaul Karim Hira addressed the seminar jointly organised by Fisheries Department and Bangladesh Shrimp and Fish Foundation.

Abdul Latif said if the country's 28000 water bodies could be properly used for fish farming, those would be the most effective sources to cut rural poverty.

The minister, however, expressed his concern that the production of spawn and fry are declining due to the changing environment in water bodies due to filling up of riverbanks by encroachers.

He stressed the need for increasing shrimp production through using modern technology instead of expanding farming areas.

Land Minister Rejaul Karim said the government had adopted a fresh fish policy to increase the production so that the country could export fish meeting the local demand.

He also emphasised inter-ministerial coordination to properly manage the government water bodies.

Principal Secretary to Prime Minister's office Abdul Karim, Land Secretary Ahsanul Fattah and BSFF chairman Syed Mahmudul Haque, among others, addressed the seminar.