NEW FAO PUBLICATIONS


Ziad H. Shehadeh

Senior Fishery Resources Officer
Fishery Resources Division

 

FAO. 1997. Review of the state of world aquaculture. FAO Fisheries Circular, No. 886, Rev. 1. Rome, FAO. 1997. 163p.

The circular updates the regular review of world aquaculture, based mainly on national statistics provided to FAO bits Members through 1995. The review is prepared in three parts. The first provides a global perspective of production and production trends, and the contribution of the sector to food fish supplies. It identifies some of the major strategic issues facing aquaculture development and presents a rough estimation of production by the year 2 000. The second part reviews developments and trends in some important fields, including environmental interactions, biodiversity and genetics, feed resources, fish health and quarantine, regulatory frameworks, product safety, international trade, and international aid to research and development. The third part reviews production and production trends, as well as main development issues and outlook on a regional basis, for each of seven regions: Asia, Africa, Former USSR Area, North America, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Oceania.

 

 

Charles, A.T.; Agbayani, R. F.; Agbayani, C.E.; Aguero, M.; Belleza, E.T.; Gonzalez, E.; Stomal, B. and Weigel, J.Y. 1997. Aquaculture economics in developing countries: regional assessments and an annotated bibliography. FAO Fisheries Circular, No. 932. Rome, FAO. 1997. 396p.

As aquaculture expands in importance globally, there is an increasing need for corresponding information, to aid managers, policy-makers and planners. This document seeks to provide a review of the current state of the aquaculture economics information and research base in developing countries, based on a comprehensive compilation of available literature on the subject. A broad integrated view is adopted, encompassing micro- and macro-economics, market analysis, socio-economics and environmental economics, the relationship with non-aquaculture economic activities (household economics), as well as relevant socio-cultural considerations. The circular contains two principal components. First, there is a set of regional assessments (Africa and the Middle East, Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific) reviewing the economics of aquaculture activity, the state of the art in aquaculture economics research, and research priorities for the future, on a region-by-region basis. Second, a set of annotated bibliographies is provided, one for each of the three regions, together with a bibliography of general references. In total, 1 154 references are included: 77 general; 223 for Africa and the Middle east; 133 for Latin America and the Caribbean; and 721 for Asia and the Pacific. Each bibliography documents available literature on the economics of aquaculture systems, emphasizing the most recent literature, but also including older literature as relevant to the current state of aquaculture. All bibliographies are indexed according to country, aquatic species, production environment, production system and eight economic subject areas.

 

Rana, K. J. 1997. Guidelines on the collection of structural aquaculture statistics. Supplement to the Programme of the World Census of Agriculture 2 000. FAO Statistical Development Series, No. 5b. Rome, FAO. 1997. 56p.

The Census of Agriculture is a large scale national statistical operation for collecting quantitative information on the structure of the countries food production sector. The new programme for the World Census of Agriculture 2 000 (WCA 2 000 Programme) recommends extending the scope of the programme to include aquaculture. This Supplement on aquaculture is intended to assist countries to improve their current surveys of aquaculture and to provide a framework for those countries intending to develop databases on aquaculture information. Its four chapters provide background information on the need for the Supplement and definitions, concepts, standards and guidelines for collecting internationally comparable data on aspects such as location and size of the farms, types of aquacultural activity, employment structure, resource use and other aquacultural inputs. The items proposed for collection address issues related to natural resource utilization and sustainable aquaculture development issues. The Supplement also provides examples of summary tables which could be used to develop a questionnaire. Also included are relevant notes from the main WCA 2 000 Programme and the species classification list for farmed aquatic species used by FAO.

FAO. 1997. Pêche et aquaculture au Proche-Orient et en Afrique du Nord: situation et perspectives en 1996. FAO Circulaire sur les Pêches No. 919. Rome, FAO. 1997. 39p.

This is the French version of the Circular of the same number, published in 1996 (see FAN 15: 33-34). It presents a detailed analysis of the state of fisheries and aquaculture in the region, one of eight such regional studies carried out for the preparation of The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture (see FAN 16: 27). The contents were described earlier in FAN 15, page 34.

FAO. 1997. Inland fisheries. FAO Technical Guidelines for Responsible Fisheries, No. 6. Rome, FAO. 36p.

This is yet another of a continuing series of guidelines published by the Organization to facilitate the implementation of the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries. Inland fisheries differ from most

other fisheries forming the subject of the Code in their high degree of inter-relatedness with other users of the aquatic resource. In most areas of the world the principal impacts on fisheries do not originate from the fishery itself but from outside the fishery. Consequently most aspects of the Code directed at the conservation and sustainability of the resource are under the control of a wide range of superior social and financial implications for society. Implementation of the provisions of the Code in these cases is more a question of negotiation and consultation with these interests. The fishery has to be managed within the constraints imposed by these external sectors and, while there is space for conventional management of the fishery as such, much attention is paid to techniques for mitigation or rehabilitation of external impacts. Inland fisheries are increasingly sharing the problems of aquaculture in that there are attempts in many fisheries to deliberately influence the composition of the fish assemblages in favour of societal goals. These introduce concepts of sustainability which correspond more to agriculture than to conventional capture fisheries, and here interpretation of some articles of the Code has to be liberal.

Sugunan, V.V. 1997. Fisheries management of small water bodies in seven countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America. FAO Fisheries Circular, No. 933. Rome, FAO. 1997. 149p.

The current interest in small water bodies derives mainly from their utilization for fisheries enhancement, which involves guidance on stocking, exploitation and species management in order to obtain optimum yield on a sustainable basis. This Circular contains the results of an attempt to probe into the national experience in management of small water bodies in selected tropical countries with a view to gauging the resource size and assessing the strengths, weaknesses and issues involved in their management from a global perspective in order to facilitate bilateral or multilateral interaction among nations displaying similar characteristics. The Circular provides an overview of the small water bodies and their fisheries in southern Africa, Asia and Latin America, represented by Zimbabwe, India, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Brazil, Cuba and Mexico. It depends heavily on the secondary data collected from various government agencies of the countries. A main constraint has been the remote and nondescript nature of the resources, the details of which, if available, were scattered among a number of agencies. Nevertheless, major facets of fisheries management in small water bodies in the seven countries have been highlighted. The main emphasis was on the resource size,

 

organization of fisheries management and species management, depending on the availability of data and information. An endeavour has also been made to offer policy prescriptions of operational significance for streamlining the fishery management of small water bodies, particularly the reservoirs and other man-made impoundments which have promising fishery potential.

FAO/DFID. 1997. Report of the Expert Consultation on Inland Fishery Enhancements. Dhaka, Bangladesh, 7-11 April 1997. FAO Fisheries Report, No. 559. Rome, FAO. 1997. 18p.

The potential for enhancement of fish production from inland waters is a priority activity of the Inland Water Resources and Aquaculture Service of the FAO Fisheries Department. Recognizing the high significance of the enhancement of fisheries for its member countries, FAO, in close collaboration with the Department for International Development of the United Kingdom (DFID, UK), organized an Expert Consultation on Inland Fisheries Enhancements in Dhaka, Bangladesh, from 7 to 11 April, hosted by the Government of Bangladesh. The consultation was attended by 42 participants from 13 countries. The major objective was to promote better understanding of how the various technical, socio-economic, cultural and administrative factors involved in implementing inland fisheries enhancements programmes must fit together to achieve success. The key conclusions were that: (i) enhancements of fisheries resources are likely to be accompanied by changes, (ii) significant production increases and associated benefits are possible via enhancements, but resource limitations and institutional constraints are likely to moderate the pace of enhancements; (iii) proper resource management of the fishery and the ecosystem, often through the use of traditional systems, is necessary to maintain the resource equilibrium that is needed for long-term sustainability; (iv) governments need to recognize both traditional and non-traditional approaches prior to the formulation of new fishery laws and regulations; and (v) institutional constraints are equal to or greater than technical limitations.

CIFA. 1997. Report of the sixth session of the Sub-Committee for the Protection and Development of the Fisheries in the Sahelian Zone. Accra, Ghana, 21-24 July 1997. FAO Fisheries Report, No. 567, Accra, FAO, 1997. 32p.

This document is the final formal report of the Sixth Session of

the Sub-Committee for the Protection and Development of the Fisheries in the Sahelian Zone of the Committee for Inland Fisheries of Africa (CIFA). Major topics discussed were: the contribution of fisheries in man-made lakes and irrigation dams to food security in the Zone; the current status of fisheries development and management in the Sahelian countries and the contribution of aquaculture to fish production in the Sahel; future of the CIFA Sub-Committee for the Protection and Development of the Fisheries in the Sahelian Zone and the sub-regional project proposal for management planning of Sahelian fisheries. The report provides information on the main decisions, directives and recommendations of the session.

GESAMP (IMO/FAO/UNESCO-IOC/WMO/WHO/IAEA/UN/UNEP Joint Group of Experts on the Scientific Aspects of Marine Environmental Protection). 1996. The contributions of science to coastal zone management. Reports and Studies, GESAMP, No. 61. Rome, FAO. 1996. 66p.

The scope, objectives and defining features of Integrated Coastal Management (ICM) are briefly described and a conceptual framework for the effective operation and evolution of ICM programmes is presented. ICM programmes have the dual goals of conserving the productivity and biodiversity of coastal ecosystems while improving and sustaining the quality of life of human communities. This requires the active and ongoing involvement of the interested public and the many sectoral groups with interests in how resources are allocated, development options are negotiated and conflicts mediated. Selected case studies from a diversity of settings in developed and developing nations reveal striking commonalties in the interplay between science and ICM and demonstrate that effective ICM cannot occur in the absence of science. The natural sciences are vital to understanding the functioning of ecosystems, and the social sciences are essential to comprehending patterns of human behaviour that cause ecological damage and to finding effective solutions. Scientists and resource managers often have different perspectives and imperatives, but need to work together as a team and reach agreement on the scientific work needed to address priorities and guide policy development. The case studies also underscore that programmes must tailor their scope and objectives for a given period to the capabilities of the institutions involved.

 

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Mr. Jiansan Jia Assumes Post As FIRI Chief

Mr. Jiansan Jia has been appointed Chief of the Inland Water Resources and Aquaculture Service (FIRI) of the Fishery Resources Division and took up his duties at FAO headquarters in Rome, Italy on 16 March 1998. A Chinese national, he gained his M.Sc. in aquaculture from the University of the Philippines in Visayas in 1982. Mr. Jia worked for the Ministry of Agriculture in Beijing from 1986 to 1988, as Director of the Division of External Economic Relations, Bureau of Aquatic Products. In this capacity, he was responsible for promoting cooperation in fisheries with other countries and international organizations and was directly involved in externally funded aquaculture development projects. Subsequently (1988-1993), he was Deputy Director-General of the Bureau of Aquatic Products, Ministry of Agriculture (MOA), in Beijing, where he participated in the

formulation ofnational development policies of the fisheries sector, with emphasis on aquaculture development. From 1993 to 1994, Mr. Jia served as Vice General Manager of the China National Fisheries orporation in Beijing, with full responsibility for the aquaculture-related business of the company. Thereafter he was first Deputy Director-General and then Director-General  a.i. of

the Department of International Cooperation, (MOA) in Beijing for the period 1994-98. Here, he supervised and coordinated bilateral and multilateral cooperation with various governmental and international organizations in the fields of agriculture, animal husbandry and fisheries.

In January 1998 he was appointed General Manager of the China National Agricultural Livestock/Fishery Corporation in Beijing, where he implemented the technical assistance programmes provided by the Government of the People's Republic of China to developing countries in the fields of agriculture, animal husbandry and fisheries. Mr. Jia is the first service chief of FIRI with a predominantly aquaculture background. His extensive experience in shaping the aquaculture sector in the People's Republic of China (PR China), is a major asset for FIRI and the Fisheries Department in general. The PR China accounted for 63% of global production from aquaculture in 1995, as well as 27 % of global landings from inland capture fisheries. It is also largely

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Mr. Jiansan Jia (left) with Mr. Moritaka Hayashi, Assistant Director General (Fisheries)

responsible for the high global growth rate of aquaculture. At a time when many countries are increasingly looking to aquaculture to help maintain per capita fish supplies, Mr. Jia's appointment is both timely and appropriate. We bid him welcome and look forward to working with him in furthering the development of sustainable aquaculture and inland fisheries.