Sustainable Aquaculture and Food Security
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The capture fisheries and aquaculture sectors both offer opportunities to increase food and nutrition security, alleviate poverty, and generate economic growth. However, while capture fisheries production has remained stagnant over the past two decades, aquaculture has grown at an average annual rate of 9%, making it the fastest-growing food production sector.
FAO projects that in order to meet growing demand, global fish production will need to reach about 172 million tons by 2021. As capture fisheries globally are on the verge of collapse due to overfishing, global climate change, ocean acidification, and marine pollution, much of the increase will need to come from aquaculture.
At this seminar, presenters from USAID, World Bank, and FAO discussed the important role of aquaculture in addressing food security and poverty reduction in developing countries, and provided projections of how much aquaculture must grow in order to meet future demand. The presenters provided an overview of the aquaculture sector with particular emphasis on the diversity of aquatic animal and plant species that are cultured and the diversity of the systems in which they are produced. They also addressed some of the most common issues that affect the sustainability of aquaculture development.
Speakers
Harry Rea
United States Agency for International Development
Harry Rea is the Aquaculture and Fisheries Advisor in USAID’s Bureau for Food Security. He began working at USAID in 1991 and has been primarily involved with the management and oversight of the aquaculture and fisheries components of USAID’s research portfolio. In particular, he has managed the Aquaculture & Fisheries Collaborative Research Support Program (AquaFish CRS) and its predecessors. CRSPs are agricultural research, training and capacity building programs that are implemented by U.S. universities and their developing country partners. Immediately prior to coming to USAID, he served as Peace Corp’s Aquaculture and Fisheries Specialist. He served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Cameroon from 1973 – 1976 where he was an aquaculture extension agent. From 1979 – 1982, he was the Associate Peace Corps Director in the Democratic Republic of the Congo where he was responsible for the aquaculture program. He holds MS degrees in aquaculture and fisheries, and agricultural economics from Auburn University.
Richard Grainger
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Richard Grainger is Chief of Fisheries Statistics and Information at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) where he was formerly Senior Fishery Statistician. From 1989 to 1992 he served as Fishery Secretary at the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES). He worked from 1977 to 1989 as Fisheries Scientist at the Fisheries Research Centre in Ireland. His professional career has been devoted to gathering data and information, undertaking analyses (assessments and prognoses), formulating and communicating advice, all with the purpose of supporting and influencing policy-making and management of fisheries and aquaculture. He is editor of the biennial FAO flagship publication “The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture”. He has a bachelor degree in zoology, a master’s in mathematical ecology and a doctorate in fisheries oceanography.
Randall Brummett
World Bank
Randall Brummett joined the World Bank as a Senior Aquaculture Specialist in 2010 after 30 years running fish farms, managing fisheries and supporting aquaculture development in Africa. Beginning with the Peace Corps, he worked with CARE, USAID, The Near East Foundation, The University of Jordan, The Heifer Project, WWF, African Wildlife Foundation, L’Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Centre Internationale de Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement, the World Fish Center, the Danish International Development Agency, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GTZ), the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, Center for International Forestry Research, and FAO.
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