[Sarnissa] FAO Aquaculture planning in Cameroon

From: lionel.dabbadie(a)cirad.fr Date: Wed, 15 Dec 2010 09:14:40 +0100 To: sarnissa-african-aquaculture(a)lists.stir.ac.uk Subject: [Sarnissa] [FAO] Aquaculture planning in Cameroon Dear all, This is just to inform you of the release of the book "Aquaculture planning - Policy formulation and implementation for sustainable development" (2010) by Cécile Brugère, Neil Ridler, Graham Haylor, Graeme Macfadyen and Nathanael Hishamunda on FAO's website: http://www.fao.org/docrep/012/i1601e/i1601e00.pdf There is a mention of the work done in Cameroon in Appendix 1: CAMEROON: “STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK FOR SUSTAINABLE AQUACULTURE DEVELOPMENT IN CAMEROON” (2003) AND “SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT PLAN FOR SUSTAINABLE AQUACULTURE” (2009) To capitalize on the country’s natural assets and recognizing the strategic importance aquaculture could have in increasing incomes and food security, the Government of Cameroon requested the assistance of FAO to prepare a strategic framework for the sustainable development of aquaculture. This framework was formulated in May 2003 by a team of experts from the Ministère de l’élevage, des pêches et des industries animals (MINEPIA), the Institute of Agricultural Research for Development (IRAD), WorldFish Center and FAO. It was considered the first step in the process of elaborating a detailed development strategy and provided the skeleton to be fleshed out in the process of defining the strategy. The framework was elaborated over a period of ten days by a team of experts from the MINEPIA, FAO, the IRAD and the WorldFish Center who built on the outputs of meetings with policy-makers, government hatchery managers and fish farmers. The strategic framework proposed was presented or discussion and adoption at a national workshop. It laid out a number of key orientations, or “principles”, to promote the sustainable development of aquaculture in Cameroon, such as focusing assistance on identified high-potential aquaculture zones, and on capacity building and extension services through public–private partnerships and closer linkages between research and extension. Importantly, it clearly defined the roles of the public and private sectors and of producers organizations in achieving the country’s vision for aquaculture development. The operationalization of the strategic framework, i.e. the formulation of a practical development plan for the sector, is being undertaken with additional assistance from FAO under a technical cooperation project entitled “Mise en place d’un plan de développement durable de l’aquaculture” (Elaboration of a sustainable development plan for aquaculture). The innovative approach used in the formulation of the development plan for the sector has lain in the iterative process undertaken, whereby draft documents have been successively reviewed and modified by multidisciplinary committees (including government officials) and groups of resource persons, experts in the field of aquaculture in Cameroon. The concomitant running of pilot sites and collection of farm data (technical and economic) and farmers’ feedback have ensured the inclusion of all perspectives and the technical relevance of the activities listed in the plan. Other activities have included the production of a detailed and critical sectoral review and the creation of a digital map for aquaculture in Cameroon to illustrate current aquaculture locations and identify areas with potential for development per province. The results of these activities have also fed into the elaboration process of the plan. The concomitant holding of training workshops on farming techniques including farmers, extensionists and government officials has proved particularly useful, highlighting the desire for knowledge and enthusiasm for the activity. It is a premise of the plan that capacity building will be a cornerstone in the successful development of the sector and that, through it, many of the sector’s current bottlenecks will be addressed. The plan was formulated over the course of a two-year project of technical cooperation between the Government of Cameroon and FAO. Its objectives are coherent with the goals of the strategic framework and those of the country’s National Rural Development Strategy. The duration of the plan is five years. Its general objective is quantitative and targets a fish production increase. This target was determined on the basis of the activities carried out by farmers on pilot sites. The plan also includes five specific objectives related to: (i) the emergence of a critical mass of commercially oriented aquaculture farms in high-potential aquaculture zones; (ii) training and capacity building to stimulate entrepreneurship among fish producers; (iii) the strengthening of the institutional and economic environments; (iv) the promotion of public–private partnerships as part of improved governance of the sector; and (v) the study of new opportunities of development for aquaculture. Each objective is broken down into a number of actions that need to be implemented to achieve it. The plan includes monitoring and evaluation indicators of progress to the objectives halfway through and at the end of the implementation phase (at three and five years, respectively). A detailed investment programme relating to the costs and sources of funding (from private operators, the government and donors) for each envisaged activity is also provided as an integral part of the plan. Best regards Lionel -- Centre de Recherche Halieutique - avenue Jean Monnet - BP 171 - 34203 Sète Cedex - France Tél : +33 4 99.57.32.05