15. The NACA Coordinator presented his report covering the period November 1982 - October 1983. The report along with those of the Lead Centre Directors are contained in Annex VIII.
16. In highlighting the project achievements and progress, he informed the Committee that since the Second Advisory Committee Meeting held in Bangkok last year, the project has continued to accelerate the implementation of its activities.
17. Host Governments and host institutions have continued to strengthen the capabilities of their respective centres in terms of new facilities and manpower inputs. Some of the more significant achievements in this aspect include the initiatlion of construction of the research and training building of RLCC, the hatchery of RLCI and the new pond facilities at RLCI and RLCC, as well as the completion of the construction of a hatchery-nursery complex at RLCP and the provision of pond facilities for RLCT field experiments by the Thai Government.
18. A total of 87 aquaculturists and technicians from 17 countries have graduated from the two aquaculture training courses conducted by NACA: 50 from the Integrated Fish Farming Training Course and 37 from the Training Course for Senior Aquaculturists, with 30 of the latter receiving Master of Aquaculture degrees awarded by the University of the Philippines in the Visayas. Their response to the evaluation questionnaires indicates high application of the knowledge gained from the training, with many promoted to positions of higher responsibilities related to aquaculture planning, extension, seed production, and research and development.
19. While the training activity has become routinised it continues to be a high priority area, with its programmes being continuously improved.
20. In anticipation of the project being extended, invitation letters have been sent to governments in the region for nomination of candidates to the 4th session of the two NACA training courses to be conducted in 1984. Nominating governments have been requested to seek financial support, if required, from bilateral and multilateral funding sources.
21. The four lead centres are now implementing their research programmes and some of the Centres have achieved significant progress. The research results on the culture system of gouramy (Trichogaster pectoralis) in converted rice fields are now being applied through government-sponsored pilot projects in Thailand.
22. While multidisciplinary system-oriented research on some topics of integrated fish farming in RLCC and carp production in undrainable ponds in RLCI are continuing. the research results on the shrimp culture system in RLCP are encouraging with vields ranging from 67.6 g/m2 to 73.8 g/m2 after 4 months of grow-out under different stocking rates.
23. With the installation of the AQUIS and MINISIS database management systems in the computers at RLCP and RLCT along with training in their use, the project has started to implement its information activity. About 700 data units have been collected by RLCT, RLCP and ADCP from conventional and unconventional publications, reports, experiments and commercial operations. The HP3000 minicomputers at RLCC and RLCI, presently being installed, are expected to be operational soon.
24. The Project Coordinator informed the Committee that efforts are being made to finalise consultations on the establishment of national aquaculture centre in the Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand.
25. The Committee was also informed of the expanded collaborative activities of NACA with other organizations and agencies such as IDRC and SEAFDEC.
26. The Coordinator reported that FAO and UNDP have identified NACA as a high priority project for additional IPF inputs in view of its successful activities.
27. Efforts have been made to generate core funding as well as other funding support needed for implementing and strengthening NACA activities, especially training. Consultations have been held with aid agencies in Norway, the Netherlands, Japan, Australia, Sweden and Denmark.
28. Follow-up actions have been taken to request participating governments to consider possible contribution to the operating costs of the Network. The Coordinator reported that some technical departments of participating governments have reacted positively to the recommendations of the Second Advisory Committee Meeting, as related to government contribution to the project operating cost. However, a number of countries indicated their financial constraints.
29. The major problems faced by the project are shortage of funds and manpower, and this situation becomes more acute with expanded activities. The Coordinator emphasised that despite these constraints the project was able to make satisfactory progress. However, the uncertainty of its future has greatly dampened the confidence and enthusiasm that have been generated among national personnel at the operational level in various host institutions.
30. The Committee noted the recommendations of the Coordinator concerning the future NACA activities in training, research and information, and the establishment of a self-supporting mechanism by participating governments, supplemented, if necessary, by donor support so that the Network could operate on a continuing and sustained basis for the development of aquaculture in the region. The need to set up a secretariat to facilitate NACA activities and manage government and donor inputs was also proposed.
REPORTS OF THE LEAD CENTRE DIRECTORS
31. The national directors of the four lead centres reported progress of their activities since the last Advisory Committee Meeting.
Activities of RLCC
32. Mr. Shan Jian reported that the Centre in China has completed its third training course on integrated fish farming held on 18 April - 15 August 1983. The course placed emphasis on practical work and field observation. 16 participants from 8 countries attended the training course which was entirely funded by the allocation of $130,000 from the country IPF of China under TCDC arrangement.
33. The Centre also provided training to 21 trainees from the Regional Lead Centre in the Philippines from 25 August to 7 September 1983 during their study tour to China.
34. Based on the experience and data collected from last year's experiments, the research programmes centred on comparative studies on the performance of different livestock manures in relation to fish production, the relationship between size and depth of manured ponds and fish yield, modelling of integrated fish farming systems and delta carbon as tracer of nutrient pathway.
35. The Centre has just installed the HP3000 computer, and its information activity will be initiated as soon as the equipment becomes operational.
36. With the merging of the Centre and the Taihu Lake Aquaculture Research Station with Changjiang Fisheries Research Institute, its manpower resources and facilities are now greatly strengthened.
37. The construction of the research and training building has just begun, while that for the staff quarters and peripheral infrastructure have been completed.
Activities of RLCI
38. While the research and training complex has been operational since 1980, new living quarters are being constructed to accommodate staff of the Centre in India. With the transfer of staff and facilities from the Pond Culture Division in Cuttack, RLCI was able to strengthen its research and training capabilities.
39. Research work on the problems related to carp culture in undrainable ponds in India is continuing. An environmental monitoring system has been established to study the chemical, biochemical and biological (including microbiological) characteristics of undrainable fish ponds. Other main research activities included genetic study of silver carp, development of feeds, fish diseases and bio-economic modelling of carp culture.
40. The Centre also privided national and international training programmes in upgrading aquaculture capabilities. In conducted training courses on Composite Fish Culture and Aquaculture Extension for RLCP trainees during their study tour in India from 30 July to 12 August 1983.
41. Action has been initiated to install the HP3000 computer at the Centre. Meanwhile, efforts are being made to collect data for entering into the AQUIS input sheets.
Activities of RLCP
42. Dr. Santiago reported that training, research and information activities of RLCP have been implemented according to schedule since the last Advisory Committee Meeting.
43. The second training course for senior aquaculturists was successfully completed on 25 March 1983 with 16 participants from eight countries receiving their diplomas. Fourteen participants were awarded Master of Aquaculture Degree from the University of the Philippines in the Visayas.
44. The third training course, began on the graduation day of the participants of the second batch, has 21 participants from 11 countries. Ten participants from SEAFDEC member countries have been granted SEAFDEC/AQD fellowship while 3 participants on IDRC fellowship and the remainder 8 participants on FAO/UNDP fellowships. Seventeen participants were admitted by UPV to their post-graduate Master Programme in Aquaculture. Todate, the participants have gone through almost half of the training. They have returned from a very fruitful overseas study tour in Thailand, India, China and Hong Kong.
45. The research activities emphasize on the verification and refinement of culture technology of shrimp and the economically important finfish such as sea bass. Since the completion of the shrimp hatchery and nursery complex, the project has not only yielded a remarkable production of shrimp larvae but also able to complete a number of studies pertaining to verification of shrimp larval rearing technologies, semi-intensive culture, feeding regime of post-larvae, stocking density and maturation.
46. In addition to the very remarkable achievement in shrimp farming research by researchers of the Centre, the Centre has successfully induced the sea bass to spawn in captivity, the first of its kind in the Philippines.
47. With regard to the information activities, the programme is now operational. A total of 360 data units have been entered, further efforts to increase the input of data unit to the AQUIS programme is being made. The Centre will also continue with publication of newsletters and production of videotapes on aquaculture systems.
Activities of RLCT
48. Dr. Thiraphan Bhukaswan reported that progress has been made in all activities of the Centre in Thailand, despite the fish disease epidemic in the country. The Department of Fisheries has provided additional facilities to conduct field experiments at the newly constructed Nong Sua Fisheries Station.
49. In research, the Centre continued to cooperate with small-scale farmers to conduct adaptive and production-oriented research. Such cooperation is expected to provide a greater impact and a more effective method of technology transfer. The Centre is presently working on 3 culture systems of gouramy, freshwater prawn and catfish.
50. In the culture of gouramy in converted ricefields, research has been directed at improving the artisanal practice through better management, including the application of chicken manure as organic fertilizer, the introduction of a nursery component and feeding of broodstock with high protein diet a month before spawning. This improved management developed through system-oriented and multidisciplinary research has more than doubled the yield of the artisanal practice.
51. Because of this encouraging achievement, the Government of Thailand has launched a development programme to extend the technology of gouramy culture in poor rice growing area. 6 integrated farms covering an area of about 13 hectares have been established with government support. The integration with ducks is for the purpose of establishing a ready source of organic manure and increasing the economic returns per unit area.
52. While the study on catfish culture system is still on-going, the research on the freshwater prawn culture system has achieved satisfactory results. The prawn. which requires brackishwater to complete its metamorphosis, can now be bred successfully with the use of residues from salt-pans. Juvenile production with 71–90% survival has been achieved at the Chiangmai Fisheries Station located about 735 km from the sea. With this success, the culture of freshwater prawn can be extended more widely in the rural area further inland, and independent of the costly seed supply from the coastal plains.
53. The Centre organized a 4-week training course for the RLCP-based trainees during their overseas study tour in Thailand last July. This is the third consecutive year in which the Centre hosted the course. Much efforts have been directed at the preparation of the training course before the arrival of the participants. In response to the decisions of the in-house meeting of the NACA Secretariat held last December, lecture notes have been compiled for dissemination.
54. The Centre has stored about 350 data units in the computer. These data collected from Thai literature and reports, include information on breeding and larval rearing, stocking rates, feeds, cost and profits for freshwater and brackishwater aquaculture operations in Thailand.
55. As for the bibliographic information, preparatory work using the MINISIS has begun. A conversion programme for the ASFA database is being tested for storing titles using the MINISIS.
56. In response to the recommendations of the NACA Secretariat in-house meeting, a working paper on the state of the art for freshwater prawn culture in Thailand has been prepared.
57. Although the constraints of operating funds and manpower have impeded the progress of activities to a limited extent, the uncertainty of the project future has created an unsettling effect on activities implementation. New initiatives could not be taken while commitments to new research projects and contractual services are taken with caution. This have a dampening effect on technical personnel at the operation level. Nevertheless, the Centre will continue and expand the research and information activities in 1984.
