35 The representative from ASEAN-EEC/ADCP stated that further opportunities for cooperation between AADCP and NACA will be actively sought as the AADCP becomes fully operational. The AADCP, which is coordinated by the Department of Fisheries of the Royal Thai Government, was conceived to initiate twinning arrangements between ASEAN and European institutes with complementary skills and involvement in aquaculture research and training. One of the ASEAN institutes involved in AADCP is one of the NACA National Centres, the Brackishwater Aquaculture Development Centre at Jepara, Indonesia. The AADCP representative's statement appears as Annex XIV.
36 The Bay of Bengal Programme for Fisheries Development which is a regional fisheries programme of FAO, cooperates wherever possible, with national and regional organizations such as NACA. The BOBP representative indicated that his organization's major interests in a relationship with NACA were to obtain and exchange information about brackishwater and coastal aquaculture development in the region, and training workshops and courses that were directly related to its ongoing activities. The BOBP statement is Annex XV.
37 The Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA) has in the past supported and continues to support fisheries and aquaculture development in countries in the region. The support has been through bilateral efforts in the form of specific projects in host countries such as India and Bangladesh. It was with interest that DANIDA observed the sessions with the hope that possible venues for cooperation might be identified. The statement of DANIDA appears as Annex XVI.
38 The representative from the International Agriculture Centre, Wageningen, said that although Dutch Bilateral Assistance was only slightly involved in aquaculture in Asia, the Government was highly interested in the performance of NACA. The activities of the network in research, training and information exchange show that collaboration among countries within a region is effective in supporting aquaculture development. Main aquaculture activities of the Dutch assistance are directed towards Africa, where aquaculture development is still at an initial stage and aquaculture projects are implemented without much coherence or information exchange. Collaboration between NACA and the different donor agencies can be a good vehicle for information exchange among aquaculture-developing countries and will contribute to a better understanding of the process of aquaculture development. The statement of the IAC, Wageningen representative is Annex XVII.
39 The representative from ICLARM reiterated its interest in developing collaborative activities with NACA institutions, and that it looked forward to discussing appropriate mechanisms. ICLARM has assisted in a modest way in NACA's regional socio-economics training course, as well as in the senior aquaculturists' training course by providing a few resource personnel. It maintained good information exchange with NACA centres and research personnel. The statement of ICLARM is Annex XVIII.
40 The International Development Reserch Centre has been actively involved in the organization, training and implementation of the Tropical Fish Health course at the Universiti Pertanian Malaysia, in conjunction with NACA. IDRC will be interested in developing and complementing similar training programmes, and of relevance to the development of the industry in the region, in collaboration with international, regional or intergovernmental institutions. There are at present four networks (of fisheries activities) being networked under IDRC: fish genetics, fish disease, fish social sciences, and fish nutrition. Collaboration and cooperation with the above network activities with those proposed by NACA would be most welcome. IDRC's statement is Annex XIX.
41 The representative from the Overseas Development Administration of the United Kingdom said that ODA's policy towards aquaculture in Southeast Asia was to support the development of national institutions, including some of those forming Regional Lead Centres or National Aquaculture Centres for NACA. ODA funds research and development studies into key aspects of aquaculture with a strong regional significance. In this regard, British expertise and activities have been focused on three main areas: fish disease diagnosis and control; integrated fish farming; and environmental assessment. He noted that ODA has, and will continue to be strongly committed to aquaculture and fisheries training in the region at both practical and academic levels.
42 ODA regards NACA highly as a regional network which can provide coordination with other donor inputs. He said that steps have been taken to regionalize, where appropriate, the ODA aquaculture programme in SE Asia. These regional activities offer particular scope for close collaboration with NACA. He noted that past ODA cooperation with NACA has not been limited to dialogue, but has involved collaboration at a practical level, to the extent of joint missions in the field. He gave specific examples of ODA-NACA collaboration. ODA's statement is Annex XX.
43 The representative from the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center informed the Council that at the last annual meeting of its Council, a proposal was made to create a fourth department in Malaysia, the Marine Fisheries Resources Research and Development, in order to manage coastal fisheries resources and to develop offshore resources, thus meeting changing requirements in the region. The three existing departments are: Training (Thailand), Marine Fisheries Research (Singapore), and Aquaculture (Philippines). SEAFDEC has played an important role in the conduct of the senior aquaculturists training course since 1981.
44 SEAFDEC, he continued, will cooperate more closely with NACA in the future as both have the common objective of promoting aquaculture in the region for the betterment of fish farmers. The means of collaboration will be discussed in more detail when NACA is transformed into an intergovernmental organization. The SEAFDEC statement is Annex XXI.
45 The representative from the Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Science, UPM, stated that the collaboration of his institution with NACA started in 1986, culminating in the launching of the post-graduate training course in Tropical Fish Health in UPM. There are tremendous avenues of cooperation and collaboration, he said, as both UPM and NACA are involved in contributing to the development of knowledge on fisheries. The statement of the delegate from UPM is Annex XXII.
46 The representative from Burma said that being a country with extensive marine fishery as well as inland resources for fishery development, they are interested in developments of aquaculture and the programmes of the Network of Aquaculture Centres in Asia. However, he regretted his inability to define his government's position at this stage. The statement of the observer from Burma appears as Annex XXIII.
47 The representative from Pakistan provided a background on the state of aquaculture in his country. Aquaculture, he said, is still in its infancy. However, Pakistan has extensive inland water areas which have varying degrees of potential for development for inland fishery and aquaculture. There are 150,000 hectares of lakes and reservoirs and 385,000 hectares of brackish intertidal lands. In addition, thousands of square kilometers are waterlogged which can be developed for aquaculture. He mentioned specific aquaculture development projects in Pakistan that are being implemented. He indicated that his government is keen on being a member of the Intergovernmental NACA. Pakistan's country statement is Annex XXIV.
48 The delegates from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam announced the decision of the Government to accede to the Agreement on the Network of Aquaculture Centres in Asia and the Pacific (NACA). He thanked NACA and other international organizations and countries for helping develop the fishery sector of Vietnam. NACA has assisted Vietnam in certain aspects including training and exchange of information, he said. He believed NACA will become sufficiently effective to contribute considerably to aquaculture development in the region with active participation from governments and further assistance from UNDP, FAO and other international organizations. He stated that Vietnam is prepared to actually and effectively participate in this cooperation. Several research and development institutions will serve as regular linkages with the NACA. The country statement of Vietnam appears as Annex XXV.
