Sixbar rockcod that were netted on Koh Kong province’s Koh Sdech island. AMS
In the quiet village of Koh Sdech in Koh Kong province’s Kiri Sakor district, the majority of the residents make their living from the sea. Around 60 per cent of them rely on fishing, a testament to the rich aquatic bounty.
Interestingly, more than ten fishing families have an additional source of income: they raise Epinephelus sexfasciatus, the fish species commonly known as the sixbar grouper, sixbar rockcod, or six-banded rockcod, which they sell to visitors who frequent the locality.
The azure waves of the ocean, nudging a row of fishing boats, create a picturesque sight. Among these vessels, there is one distinct fish-raising cage owned by Em Srey Mom, a 54-year-old local fisherwoman.
Srey Mom has been an angler her entire life, as has her husband. The couple has five children, three of whom live with them in Koh Sdech village and commune of Koh Kong province’s Kiri Sakor district. Three of their children have successfully completed their Grade 12 education, while the remaining two are still attending high school.
Srey Mom harbours dreams of seeing her children pursue higher education once their financial situation improves. To this end, she is augmenting her income by raising approximately 700 to 800 sixbar groupers. This particular fish species fetches a higher price compared to other marine fish due to its popularity among both the locals and tourists.
“Numerous fishermen in Koh Sdech also raise this type of fish as a side business,” she shares. “This practice considerably bolsters the family’s income and crucially aids in supporting their children’s education”.
To raise these fish, Srey Mom creates four-square-metre fishing cages and feeds them with other marine fishes. She currently owns eight such cages. The juvenile fish, bought from other fishermen for about 45,000 riel per kilogramme ($11.25), take seven months to a year to grow to a weight of 0.7 to 1 kg per fish. She can then sell them for between 50,000 riel ($12.50) to 55,000 riel ($13.75) per kg.
According to Srey Mom, the sixbar grouper’s delicious taste makes it a hit with tourists. In addition to selling the fish to visitors, she also delivers orders to customers in Phnom Penh and Koh Kong, who place orders via her mobile phone.
Despite the additional income from fish farming, Srey Mom speaks of the financial challenges her family and other fishermen on the island face. She laments that they have no substantial wealth and that their living standard is merely decent. She also mentions a decline in the number of fish she’s able to catch, thereby increasing her reliance on fish farming for additional income.
Say Heng, the chief of Koh Sdech commune, confirmed to The Post that the majority of residents, about 60 per cent, earn their livelihood as fishermen. The rest are involved in trading or other diverse occupations. He further specified that amongst the fishermen, around ten families engage in the cultivation of sixbar grouper.
However, he said this kind of fish farming is still a small-scale family business and hasn’t grown to a large scale yet.
Meng Leang, director of the Fisheries Administration’s (FiA) Koh Kong provincial cantonment – which operates under the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries – could not be reached for comment on this topic.
