The projected increases in aquaculture production in Third World countries are contingent on the availability of substantial increases in investment, research support, manpower development, technology transfer, input production and distribution, and extension services. Obviously, most countries would need external assistance for the provision of these requirements in a reasonably short period of time, as outlined in Annexure IV.
As mentioned earlier, the investment requirements of aquaculture are relatively large. Even though in the immediate future, many of the countries may be in a position to use labour-intensive and low level technologies, experience shows that the need for more intensive methods of farming and mechanized operations often develop much sooner than expected. If this is taken into account, the possibility and need for cooperation between developing and industrially advanced countries in the field of aquaculture will become evident. The favourable climatic conditions in most developing countries stand out as a major advantage for cooperative ventures between them, either in the public or private sector, as appropriate. Most of the target countries rely on the private sector for commercial aquaculture. Therefore, joint ventures on mutually advantageous terms for large-scale aquaculture or even the production of aquaculture inputs, may serve to speed up development. Government assistance in both donor and recipient countries would be needed to facilitate such cooperative efforts. It would appear that non-governmental organizations and private sector institutions will have significant roles in such arrangements.
The need for implementation of pilot projects to test the technical and economic viability of farming systems and to generate data required for investment decisions, has already been referred to. Technical and financial assistance for such projects as well as for large-scale aquaculture undertaking in the private or public sector deserve high priority. Investment guidance centres could play an important role in facilitating the provision of such assistance.
A close examination of development experience in most countries will show the crucial role of production and distribution of inputs in aquaculture. Of the inputs, probably the most important are "seed" and "feed". Although the methods often used in small-scale production of both these types of inputs may be different from those widely adopted in developed countries, when mass production is needed for farming on a large scale (either in small or large units) the need for adoption of more sophisticated techniques becomes apparent. Many countries have started the establishment of modern hatchery and nursery facilities for seed production. Efforts are also being made to identify suitable locally available feed ingredients and to formulate and prepare nutritionally adequate feeds. The advantages of rearing strains and hybrids of species with favourable culture characteristics are now well recognized and research efforts are being directed towards this important field. These activities can greatly benefit from external aid. Although experience in donor countries may not strictly relate to the species cultured in developing countries, the expertise in relevant disciplines available in donor countries, when combined with culture experience in recipient countries, could produce results of great value and mutual interest.
Although pond farming continues to be the main type of aquaculture in developing countries there is now an increasing trend towards introduction and expansion of cage and pen culture. While the development of suitable feeds is a pre-requisite for most types of cage farming, the relatively lower investment costs and possibilities of intensive production make such culture an attractive proposition in most countries. Despite the fact that cage farming is traditional in some parts of Asia, there have been many modern developments in this field in industrially advanced countries such as Norway and Japan. Transfer of cage culture technologies and technical assistance in this field can contribute substantially to aquaculture development in Third World countries.
Another major field in which aid is urgently needed is aquaculture engineering. If engineering expertise available in developed countries could be combined with aquaculture experience in developing countries, the design, construction and management requirements of aquaculture installations can be adequately met.
Diagnosis and control of diseases is well developed in culture of cold-water species and certain warm-water species in developed countries. Although diseases have not yet been a major problem in aquaculture in the less intensive systems of farming adopted in Third World countries, it is bound to become serious as intensive culture practices become prevalent. Aid from developed countries in this field can contribute substantially to sound development of aquaculture.
Multidisciplinary training of personnel with adequate emphasis on practical work is widely recognized as of the utmost importance and urgency in development of aquaculture at present. It is also recognized that such training should be organized in the countries or regions where the personnel are required to work, based largely on species and culture systems that they are expected to work with. The development of regional and national institutions for this purpose should receive high priority as these are essential for developing national capabilities in science and technology. Support for the continued operation of regional training programmes already initiated in Regional Aquaculture Centres in Asia, Africa and Latin America and the proposed centre in the Caribbean region should be ensured. On a national basis facilities for the training of technicians and extension personnel should be established. In fact, this should form part of most types of aid offered in the field of aquaculture.
The importance of applied research for the improvement of existing aquaculture technologies and the development of new ones has been well recognized. However, the multidisciplinary systems-oriented research needed for this purpose requires considerable investments for the development of facilities and expertise. Aid-giving agencies can play a major role in the development of research institutions. The regional aquaculture centres and the national institutions linked to them form the most logical mechanisms for this purpose and with necessary strengthening and assured support for continued operation, they can very effectively fill the research needs in this field. It will be of mutual benefit for these institutions to establish close linkages with research institutions in developed countries, for exchange of experience and expertise. The need for further development of the Aquaculture Information System (AQUIS) and the participation of developed country institutions in this System, cannot be over-emphasized.
In view of the already available experience in aquaculture in some of the developing countries, the relevance of Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries (TCDC) in this sector has often been emphasized. However, it has been found that effective TCDC generally needs appropriate funding support and in its absence fails to produce the desired results. On the other hand, external aid combined with TCDC can be an efficient instrument for the transfer of appropriate technologies and mobilization of resources in rural areas for speedy development.
