The training of fisheries operatives in Malaysia

Abstract

Training plays an essential role in fisheries development. It is process of acquiring knowledge or skill over a period of time. Such training can either be acquired in a classroom or on-the-job. Its importance can be summed up in the often quoted saying: "Give a man fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man how to fish, and you feed him for the rest of his life". Traditionally, fishermen learn most of their skill during the course of their work, the experienced fisherman passing the necessary skills to the new recruit while working at sea. While on-the-job training is essential to give experience and skill, it is time-consuming and very often ineffective because of the difficult conditions and lack of facilities on board Malaysian commercial vessels. Ideally, fisheries training should be a combination of classroom and shipboard training and it should be of a continuous nature.