Sri Lanka’s location, extensive coastline and sizeable exclusive economic zone should make fishing one of the country’s important economic strengths. Yet, despite these natural advantages, the fishing industry continues to struggle from one crisis to another, while successive Governments have failed to give the country’s marine resources the sustained attention they deserve.

This is not simply a matter of fishermen struggling to make a living. It is about a national resource that has been poorly managed, inadequately protected and insufficiently developed.

Our fishermen have traditionally depended on the sea for their livelihoods, and the country has generally practised sustainable fishing methods. But sustainability alone cannot guarantee prosperity. Resources have to be properly researched, protected and managed, while fishermen need the infrastructure, technology and support necessary to make the most of what the sea can provide.

Instead, the fishing industry has been left to contend with a long list of difficulties. The high cost of fuel has repeatedly affected fishermen, increasing the cost of going to sea and reducing the returns from each trip. When fuel prices rise, the consequences are felt throughout the fishing industry and ultimately by consumers.

Then there is the persistent problem of Indian fishermen entering Sri Lankan waters. Indian poaching has been a longstanding source of tension and a direct concern for Sri Lankan fishermen who depend on the country’s maritime resources. The issue cannot be treated merely as a diplomatic inconvenience. For fishing communities already facing declining catches and rising costs, every illegal intrusion into Sri Lankan waters represents another threat to their livelihoods and to the country's marine resources.

Climate change has added another layer of uncertainty. Changing ocean conditions, warming seas and shifting fish patterns are making it increasingly difficult for fishermen to predict where and when their traditional catches will be available. The sea that once provided a relatively dependable livelihood is becoming a far less predictable workplace.

Now, El Niño is being discussed as the next possible threat. But the latest warning from the National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency (NARA) should also remind us of the dangers of rushing to conclusions.

NARA Chairperson Prof Sanath Hettiarachchi has correctly pointed out that it is too early to blame El Niño for the current decline in fish resources. El Niño has not yet hit Sri Lanka, he said, while the decline in fishing resources is part of a global tendency. NARA has identified declining nutrients in the sea as one factor under investigation, while also examining social and cultural factors, the behavioural patterns of fish and other related issues.

The agency is expected to submit an interim report to the Government within the next month and a half, with a final report taking longer. This research is important, but it must not end up as another report gathering dust on a Government shelf.

The present situation should instead be treated as a wake-up call. Sri Lanka cannot continue responding to problems in the fishing industry only after fishermen begin reporting empty nets. Research must become the foundation of fisheries policy. We need to know what is happening beneath our waters, why fish stocks are changing and how fishing practices can be adapted without destroying the resource itself.

The Government must also recognise that protecting the fishing industry is not merely about protecting fishermen. It is about food security, employment, coastal communities, exports and national economic resilience.

For decades, Sri Lanka has spoken proudly of the advantages bestowed by its geography. But geography alone creates no prosperity. It is good governance, investment, scientific research and effective resource management that turn natural advantages into national wealth.

Our fishing resources belong to the country. They should neither be neglected nor treated as an inexhaustible gift from nature. The sea is changing, the climate is changing and the pressures on fishermen are increasing.

What cannot remain unchanged is the Government’s level of attention.

Sri Lanka has spent far too long looking towards the sea without fully recognising the wealth beneath it. The time has come to make the fishing industry a genuine national priority, before declining catches, environmental change and external pressures turn a longstanding livelihood into a lost opportunity.