Training facilitators and participants during the field visit to PhilNor Aqua Inc., a hatchery farm in Nueva Ecija, as part of the capacity building activity.

FAO, under the ongoing project "Responsible use of fisheries and aquaculture resources for sustainable development" (GCP/GLO/352/NOR), in collaboration with the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCAARRD) of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) of the Department of Agriculture (DA), is running an in-person intensive training course on the implementation of the FAO 12-point active surveillance checklist from 11-17 September 2023 in the Science City of Muñoz, Nueva Ecija in Central Luzon. The project is supported by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD).

Surveillance and monitoring activities are essential to safeguarding a country’s aquaculture industry and biodiversity. It is vital to a country's national aquatic organism health strategy. The surveillance and monitoring of diseases of aquatic organisms is an economic undertaking that needs to be systematic, collaborative, and purposeful in its goals to ensure its successful and effective implementation.

The training course is designed to build capacity in surveillance and monitoring activities in the Philippines. The course gives focused guidance on each point of the 12-point active surveillance checklist, comprised of: (1) scenario setting; (2) defining the surveillance objectives; (3) defining the population; (4) clustering of diseases; (5) case definition; (6) diagnostic testing; (7) study design and sampling; (8) data collection and management; (9) data analysis; (10) validation and assurance; (11) human and financial resources and logistics requirements; and (12) surveillance in the bigger picture.

The course consists of lectures and working group exercises covering the 12-point checklist, which are delivered by a multinational team of FAO experts, including Beibei Jia (Canada), Fernando Mardones (Chile), Melba Reantaso (FAO HQ), and Kathy Tang-Nelson (USA). Additionally, local experts delivered presentations on the topics of aquaculture research and development roadmap (A Tisico), the state of aquaculture development (J Paclibare and N Chingcuanco), diseases of finfish (J Somga) and shrimps (C Lavilla-Pitogo), and biosecurity governance (S Somga) to give context to the Philippine setting.

Participants are conducting working group exercises for each of the points in the checklist using scenarios of aquatic organism diseases in the Philippines such as acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease, Enterocytozoon hepatopenaei, Streptococcus agalactiae, and viral nervous necrosis. among others.

A field visit to PhilNor Aqua Inc., a hatchery farm owned and operated by Felicisssima Longalong, gave insights into the Filipino aquaculture farmer’s situation. The participants will also undergo a written examination at the end of the course to gauge their understanding of the many concepts used in the surveillance and monitoring of diseases of aquatic organisms.

Some 50 attendees from the public and private sectors of the Philippine aquaculture industry are participating in this seven-day intensive course.

Dr Lionel Dabbadie, FAO Representative to the Philippines, says “in a world where diseases increasingly impact our lives, well-being, and food, we need to improve the way we handle them. I am very happy that Philippines will be the first country to operationalize in-person the 12-point checklist for surveillance of diseases of aquatic organisms with the support of the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources and Norway.”

BFAR Director of Region III, RD Wilfredo M. Cruz, welcomed the participants as well as the international experts and expressed his appreciation on the continuous assistance by the FAO and the organizers of the event. He emphasized on the importance of developing knowledge and collaboration in the advancement of the aquaculture sector particularly in Region III, a major aquaculture producing region in the country. He reiterated the urgent need to develop biosecurity and epidemiological tools in mitigating disease threats towards the improvement of aquatic sector in the country. Finally, he encouraged everyone to engage, learn and collaborate through sharing experiences, ideas and knowledge for a prosperous and sustainable future of the aquaculture.

BFAR Director, Atty. Demosthenes R. Escoto, welcomed the training workshop participants and expressed his appreciation on ongoing united efforts towards the betterment of the Philippines ‘aquaculture industry. He recognized the significance of health of aquatic organisms which is vital for the economy of the country and livelihoods of the Filipinos. He emphasized the crucial sustainable, innovative and proactive measures in solving problems in aquatic animal health which includes the application of the FAO’s 12-point checklist. He encouraged all participants to showcase their enthusiasm, determination and understanding to create a positive change in the aquatic industry and collectively engage in safeguarding health and the future of the country’s aquatic resources.

DOST-PCAARD Executive Director, Dr. Reynaldo V. Ebora, expressed gratitude to the training organizers' BFAR, FAO and DOST-IARRD. He said that the initiative provides the platform to keep the stakeholders informed and well-versed in fundamental aspects and requirements of the fishery sector.

Fisheries play a crucial role in ensuring nation’s food security and driving economic growth. The challenges affecting the aquatic sector must be acknowledged such as outbreak of diseases in aquaculture species including shrimp, milkfish, and tilapia. Recognizing this concern, comprehensive training becomes necessary to empower not only government entities like local government units and state universities and colleges, but more so smallholder farmers and fisherfolk to enable them to have a better understanding of the prevalent diseases affecting the species being cultured, as well as to equip them with the necessary knowledge and skills to maintain and protect our aquatic species and the sector.

DOST-PCAARRD, a longstanding partner of FAO in the country, is committed to supporting and strengthening the fisheries and aquatic sector through various research and development. Strong collaboration between different government agencies, academic institutions, private sector entities, and other concerned stakeholders is vital in ensuring the health and well-being of our aquatic ecosystems.

The relevant review paper for the 12-point active surveillance checklist can be found here.