October 29, 2010

 

Vietnam and Egypt sign aquaculture agreement

 

 

One of Asia's booming mariculture sectors, Vietnam, will merge with Egypt, in an effort to launch an aquaculture industry using both river and sea to generate its product.

 

The cooperation agreement was signed between Egypt's General Authority for Fish Resources Development (GAFRD) and Vietnam's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) in May to establish a framework for joint fisheries growth.

 

Researchers, trainers and quality control technicians in fisheries and aquaculture in both countries are being encouraged to share expertise and exchange visits.

 

GAFRD general manager Ahmed Salem said the partnership intends to exploit each country's comparative advantages pertinent to aquaculture to advance the industry.

 

"The two countries are an ideal match (for technical transfer) as both share a similar economic and social situation, and both offer solutions that do not rely on high technology," Salem stated. "Egypt is a leader in freshwater aquaculture, while Vietnam is very developed in mariculture."

 

Egypt raises four out of every five fish farmed in Africa, with its fish farms generating over 700,000 tonnes of finfish last year, or 65% of Egypt's total fish production.

 

GAFRD chairman Mohamed Fathy Osman said Egypt hopes to gain direction in breeding and processing saltwater marine species.

 

"Mariculture only contributes about 5% to our total fish production," he explained, "but I think it is the future of aquaculture in Egypt, either through cage culture or offshore fish farming. For certain, we will need foreign expertise in marine breeding and incubation techniques to develop this field."

 

Vietnam will offer training courses on open sea and cage breeding of marine finfish and shellfish. Egyptian technicians, in turn, are assisting Vietnam in improving freshwater fish farms' productivity and quality as it works on growing its tilapia market.

 

Scientists at Egypt's national aquaculture research centre in Abbassa, northeast of Cairo, have developed a new strain of tilapia that can grow 20% faster than usual. Although not yet available to commercial producers, the strain as well as the centre's work in stock selection and nutritional regimes is priceless to small-scale tilapia farmers in developing nations.

 

Vietnam wants Egyptian expertise to aid its move to pond culture as it works to better the quality of its freshwater products. Consumer groups in Egypt and numerous other countries have accused Vietnam of raising its pangasius in the heavily contaminated Mekong River, complicating exports.