24-09-2021 —The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of China (MARA) jointly convened a high-level round table meeting on “South-South and triangular Cooperation (SSTC) for Sustainable Aquaculture Development” during the 4th Global Conference on Aquaculture. More than 60 participants, including ministerial representatives of agricultural and fishery departments, diplomatic envoys to China, and representatives of international organizations attended the roundtable meeting to discuss how to promote SSTC for sustainable aquaculture development.

In the opening remarks, Ma Youxiang, vice minister of MARA, highlighted the significance of the roundtable meeting and noted that it was the first high-level SSTC event on sustainable aquaculture development to be organized, so far. He also emphasized that “China will continue to enhance cooperation, strengthen cultivation of talents and share technical models to promote SSTC for sustainable aquaculture development”.

Aquaculture plays an important role in food security and nutrition, livelihood, economic development and sustainable use of aquatic resources. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the entire value chain of the aquaculture sector has been hit hard, with negative effects on aquatic production, markets, international trade, connection to suppliers and supply of aquatic products. 

“Promoting the sustainable development of aquaculture, as part of the necessary transformation of food systems, is crucial to eliminate global poverty and hunger, support the development of small-scale enterprises, and contribute to circular economy objectives” said Mr. Manuel Barange, Director of Fisheries and Aquaculture Division of FAO. He noted that “Blue Transformation, FAO’s vision for sustainable and transformative aquatic food solutions, cannot be achieved by the Organization alone. It needs partners in government, the private sector, academia and civil society working concertedly towards common goals.”

Mr. Ye Anping, Director of the South-South and Triangular Cooperation Division (PST) in FAO, emphasized the role SSTC plays in the aquaculture sector and noted that “aquaculture has always been a key priority area that FAO has been supporting through SSTC”. He remarked that the areas and modalities of cooperation in the sector have been extensive and diversified and have brought remarkable results.  Mr. Ye also underscored that “FAO looks forward to further strengthening SSTC with its Members in the field of aquaculture, providing more effective cooperation platforms, better services, and more contributions to accelerate global agri-food systems transformation”.

China has been one of the first countries to engage in SSTC with FAO and is the major promoter and contributor of financial and technical resources to the Organization. A trust fund for the FAO-China South-South Cooperation (SSC) Programme was established in 2009 and the Government of China has contributed a total of $130 million to this fund, so far.  

FAO’s Office in China also plays an important role in facilitating the transfer and sharing of China’s knowhow and experience on aquaculture development with other developing countries. Mr. Carlos Watson, FAO Representative to China, noted that “FAO China has been repositioned as a relevant partner for China, through both an inward approach to support China’s development priorities in agriculture and an outward approach to jointly support global food system development, with our principle of working from China, with China and for China.”

Ministerial representatives from Argentina, Russia, the United States, Germany, Indonesia, Thailand, Tanzania, Fiji, Ghana, Sweden, Japan, the Philippines, South Korea, Sierra Leone, Turkey, Uganda and other countries shared views on sustainable aquaculture development during the roundtable meeting. In-depth discussions were also held on successful experiences, future roadmaps and potential collaboration to further promote SSTC for sustainable aquaculture development. 

Subsequent to the discussions, MARA launched the “Initiative on Promoting SSTC for Sustainable Aquaculture Development”.

The Global Conference on Aquaculture takes place every ten years and for the first time, this year, was held in China, on the theme, “Aquaculture for Food and Sustainable Development”. FAO broadcasted the conference.