Aquaculture Business Investment Planning and Development to Increase Resilience and Improve Food Security - TCP/SAP/3603

Abstract

Aquaculture has been identified by many Pacific Island governments as a sector with strong potential to innovate, reap productivity gains, generate employment and contribute to regional food and nutrition security and livelihood diversification. Nonetheless, against a backdrop of climate change and insufficient finance streams for such a specialized sector, aquaculture production in Small Island Developing States (SIDS) in the Pacific Region requires new streams of technical cooperation and public-private finance. This will facilitate a more sustainable transformation towards a more economically and environmentally viable and resilient aquaculture sector, in turn allowing those involved to benefit from new technologies and international best practices. With growing regional demand for fish, aquaculture in Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs) could become an increasingly important employer for rural communities. The rapid growth in production over the past three decades has been largely due to the expansion of cultured areas, technological intensification and increased use of aquafeed, at times leading to short-term increases in income and output, but also adversely impacting marine ecosystems. To this end, and through its support in developing national and regional business development and investment strategies for aquaculture, the project responds to the needs of the countries of the Micronesian Association for Sustainable Aquaculture (MASA) – comprised of the Marshall Islands, Micronesia (Federated States of), Nauru and Palau – for business planning information and tools. In strengthening the business strategy and sustainability of this sector, FAO and regional partners, such as the Pacific Community (SPC), seek to support community-led aquaculture farms, public and private sector actors along the aquaculture value chain and relevant line ministries (e.g. fisheries, marine resources and environmental authorities) in the MASA countries. As such, national consultations on policy, regulatory and technical capacity reviews proved timely in identifying aquaculture species most suitable for investment, as part of cost-effective business development plans that pay special attention to managing biosecurity risks.