The session was opened, on behalf of IFREMER, by Mr Ph. Ferlin, the MEDRAP coordinator in France, and Mr A. Febvre, the Director of Palavas aquaculture station, who welcomed the delegates.
The coordinator of MEDRAP II, Mr H. Akrout thanked the organisers and gave a short address, emphasising the need for continuous, regional and international cooperation, especially in the area of aquaculture training.
The meeting elected :
- Chairlady : Mrs Daphne Stephanou, Cyprus
- Vice-Chairman : Mr Z. Farsi, Algeria
- Raporters : Mr A. Benovic, Croatia
Mr Mohamed Abderrahmane el Safty,
Egypt
Pr J. Wallace, Portugal.
The agenda prepared by the coordinator was adopted unanimously.
A representative of each country gave an account of the educational possibilities and activities in his/her country. (These communications are attached to this report).
Mr Ferlin explained the situation as regards France, and gave a synthesis of the replies to the questionaire on the subject of perceived training requirements.
Communications were given by :
- Mr Olivier Guelorget, University of Montpellier
- Mr Bruno Barroux, CEREMHER-Mèze
- Mr Làszlo Varadi, Fish Culture Research Institute, Szarvas
about the experiences and the opportunities which their insitutes provide in the various aspects of the field of aquaculture.
The communications were followed by documentary films about fisheries tyraining in Egypt and the activities of IFREMER.
The needs, as stated in the replies to the questionaire, which distinguished among research, commercial and administrative/financial requirements, were generally stated. Almost all countries stated that there is a need for development of training in the research sector specifically in pathology, nutrition and breeding. Most countries also stated a need for training in various commercial and technical aspects. It was noted in discussion that competence in the areas of administration, finance and marketing was becoming important, as well as aquaculture - environment interactions.
Taking training requirements as a starting point, 4 levels of training were required :
- Training of workers
- Training of technicians
- Training of management
- Training of “trainers” (teachers)
The question was the raised as to wether MEDRAP II should concern itself with all, some or only one of these categories of training.
Two points were made in this connection :
- Specific needs will vary from country to country and through time
- At the level of workers and technicians, it is likely that training can be carried out only in the native language of the trainee.
This should probably be a responsibility of each country.
It was, therefore concluded that MEDRAP should be concerned mainly with training at the higher level, trainers and upper management.
This approach is also compatible with MEDRAP's objective of assisting each country to develop an aquaculture industry according to national plans.
At the level of “training of trainers”, the sources of competences are institutions of higher education and/or research, both within and outside the MEDRAP countries.
The institutions in the MEDRAP region must be identified as soon as possible.
After having done this, by compiling a directory, the competences available can then the divided among several important topics :
- Hatchery management
- Farm management
- Water management
- Economics and marketing
- Fish health management and control (not strictly pathology)
- Planning, administrative, legal, financial and environmental aspects.
The need for pathologists is a special one, since veterinary qualifications could be legally required by some countries
It is suggested that each country should nominate one “focal point”, for the further development of the network of cooperation.
It was emphasised that a formal (legal/juridic) framework is a perequisite for the establishment of the network.
Information on bilateral and multilateral agreements providing training in aquaculture was given by the participants, with a view to exploring possibilities of development within these : as an example, the Maghreb countries, being on existing alignment, could suggest initiation of a programme for aquaculture training.
The possibility of support for the development of the network from organisations such as EEC, the Scandinavian NORAD and SIDA, etc. should be explored.
Greater involvement of the private sector was also discussed, as regards the provision of in-job training, and trainers with practical experience.
Internationally competent institutions close to the region might also be associated with the MEDRAP training network. Reference was made to the Institute of Aquaculture, University of Stirling, Scotland, the Fish Culture Research Institute, Szarvas, Hungary and CEREMHER, France.
As an example of an Institute involved in high level training in the Mediterranean region, a description of the organisation and activities of the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Montpellier (IAMM), which is a part of the International Centre for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies (CIHEAM), was given by the director, Mr Roland Perez.
As the role of this Institute is to provide post-graduate training and to animate cooperative research networks, it is important for MEDRAP to explore the possibility of cooperation for with CIHEAM in order to benefit from its experience.
The seminar recommended the following actions :
A more detailed identification of needs must be provided by the national coordinators before the next Steering Committee meeting (December 1991).
Compilation of a Directory of Aquaculture training competence in the region, listing the institutions existing and the training services possible :
The questionnaire already submitted to the seminar will be forwarded to the national coordinators of the member countries, and to the institutions in the associated countries, by the end of September 1991, to be completed and returned by the end od December 1991.
A consultant will be employed to undertake the necessary compilation, based on the replies to the questionnaire and will prepare a draft document by the end of March 1992. The consultant will, if necessary, collect supplementary information, to be included in the directory, from other available sources.
The draft document will be circulated to the member countries for comments, after which the final publication will be completed by the end of June 1992.
The designation, before the next steering Committee meeting of “focal points” in each of the members countries, the identification of which should be communicated to the regional coordinator by the national coordinators.
Taking into consideration the complementarity of networks of research, information and training, and their interactions, it is recommended that the present report be circulated at the meetings of the relevant seminars on sub-networking, to take place in Cyprus and Egypt respectively.
The project coordinator should explore :
the possibility of cooperation with institutions in the region, specialised in training and networking.
the possibility of financial assistance to the implementation of the network, from sources within and outside the region.
the possibility of involvement in the network of aquaculture training institutions both inside and close to the region.
The actions recommended should be undertaken and completed by the next seminar, which will take place in autumn 1992. The project coordinator will provide the necessary documents by the end of July 1992.
Mr. ACKROUT, Project Coordinator, closed the session and thanked the chairlady, the vice-chairman and the reporters for their assistance. He also thanked the French Government and IFREMER for their support to the organisation of the session and invited the delegation to attend the next session to be held in Autumn 1992.
