The situation on arrival showed problems primarily in the areas of management, technical knowledge and physical site infractructure. The site was being maintained but without ongoing aquaculture activities. During the consultant's stay, attention was paid to these points and some progress made. There is, understandable, a shortage of people with practical fish cultivation skills and experience. The following summarizes the main recommendations discussed in more detail elsewhere in this report.
To optimize utilization of the present limited number of ponds, an order of priorities of the tasks of the Aiyura site must be decided upon. It is recommended that production of carp fingerlings and testing of growout systems appropriate to local village conditions be given precedence over growing commercial quantities of table-size
To consolidate training provided by the consultant, the Centre should practice controlled carp breeding, fry and fingerling production. Experience gained will enable staff to contribute useful ideas when finalising the design for site extension which is to be carried out in 1987.
To improve the facilities of the site, more small experimental ponds should be constructed utilizing the available labour and unused land. Ponds of 10–100 m2 each would be useful for a wide range of experiments, growout trials and short-term fish storage. Concrete tanks for spawning and hatching as described in section 4.7 should be built near the ponds.
To evaluate systems of carp growing which may be effective under PNG highland village conditions, there is an urgent need for growout trials to be carried out in small ponds. In particular the relationship between growth rates, carp biomass and rates of feeding or manuring using locally available materials must be investigated.
To extend the research capacity of the site, it is recommended that close cooperation be initiated with a limited number of pond owners (private or institutional) in the immediate vicinity. In exchange for stocking material and management assistance, farmers can provide useful data on pond productivity under agreed regimes.
To gain experience in integrated livestock and fish farming, methods which involve the intensive manuring of small unfed ponds using poultry wastes should be tried. Particular attention must be paid to the overall economics of the system by careful monitoring and recording of all inputs and yields.
To start gaining information and skills there should be some efforts made to incorporate other locally-available species into polyculture with carp. In particular, combinations of carp, tilapia (in all-male culture produced by hand sexing of fingerlings) and mullets may give considerably increased productivity in ponds receiving manure or low grade feeds. Barramundi offer the possibility of another method of controlling tilapia breeding and a potential high-priced fish for sale.
To safeguard the credibility of fish culture, ensure that only locallytested growout techniques and technologies are transferred to villagers. The existing extension manuals should be revised and updated to illustrate only methods which are known to work under PNG highland conditions.
To improve efficiency and motivation of personnel, institute regular involvement of staff of all levels in the daily work of the site. The primary activity of this type of aquaculture centre takes place in the ponds, and this is where the close participation of a skilled aquaculturist is most needed. At present, there is only one highly trained aquaculturist on the site. He should give practical aquaculture higher priority than administration in allocating his time.
To prevent the site returning to a condition of relative dormancy, progress should be monitored regularly by a person with considerable practical experience in fish cultivation and breeding, who can also advise and guide those working at Aiyura. In the absence of such a person within DPI it might be very beneficial if use could be made of the expertise of certain UPNG Fisheries Department staff.
