This is the annual report 2000-2001 of the ACIAR Project FIS/97/73 Improved hatchery and grow-out technolgy for grouper aquaculture in the Asia-Pacific region. The report describes progress by research partners in development of larval rearing, grow-out diet development, and collaboration via the Asia-Pacific Marine Finfish Aquaculture Network. It also provides an indicative research workplan for the year ahead and future plans for the network.

The purpose of the workshop was to develop and document mechanisms for training in livelihoods approaches and analysis, and to build national capacity to conduct livelihoods studies. The workshop in Yangon was the fourth in a series, the first of which was held in Iloilo City, Philippines, in November 2003, the second in Ranchi, India, in February 2004, and the third in Vientiane, Lao PDR in March 2004. A subsequent workshop will take place in Yunnan, China.

These are the proceedings of a workshop, funded by the APEC Fisheries Working Group Project 02/2000. The project developed a framework with nine major research components: Health and production at hatcheries, regional collaborative disease resource centers, regional disease monitoring and surveillance, improving regional diagnostic capabilities, responsible trans-boundary movement, farm health management, vaccines and vaccination, funding mechanisms and establishment of an ad-hoc working group.

The purpose of the workshop was to develop and document mechanisms for training in livelihoods approaches and analysis, and to build national capacity to conduct livelihoods analysis. The workshop in Ranchi was a joint India-Nepal event. A central element of the workshop was a visit to the Jabarrah community, where participants learnt about the community’s livelihoods. In addition to gaining information about the Jabarrah community itself, participants also had important insights into how best to conduct livelihoods analyses.

This is the report of the “DLF/NACA-STREAM/FAO National Workshop on Livelihoods Approaches and Analysis” that was conducted in Vientiane, Lao PDR from 8-12 March 2004. The purpose of the workshop was to develop and document mechanisms for training in livelihoods approaches and analysis, and to build national capacity to conduct livelihoods analysis. The workshop in Vientiane was the first STREAM event in Lao PDR.

The recommendations are derived from discussions at the consultation and three expert working groups and were adopted during the final plenary session of the Expert Consultation. Together they represent a powerful set of recommendations in use of rapid diagnostic tools for better health management in shrimp aquaculture. They have been put together in this summary document for rapid dissemination to potential users, researchers and other interested parties, in India and elsewhere.

In February 2002 the shrimp fry collection ban was placed into abeyance pending further review of how biodiversity could be conserved at the same time as protecting the livelihoods of 400,000 fry collectors. A Shrimp Action Plan for the period April - September 2002 was drawn up to identify trends impacting on distribution and growth in the shrimp sector, and to explore alternative models for the management of fry resource and to assess their social, institutional and economic implications.

This document was the result of the discussions, conclusions and recommendations reached during the Expert Consultation in consultation held in Bhubaneswar, India, 16-19 October 2001. It was based on country reviews (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Pakistan, Nepal, and Sri Lanka), a synthesis paper (India), a technical guideline paper (Chinese experience) and resource expert papers (diseases and health management, water use and environment, nutrition and feeding) made available or presented during the Expert Consultation.

This is the report of the “BFAR/NACA-STREAM/FAO Workshop on Livelihoods Approaches and Analysis” held in Iloilo City, Philippines from 24-28 November 2003. The main purpose of the workshop was to develop and document mechanisms for training in livelihoods approaches and analysis, and to build national capacity to conduct livelihoods analysis. The workshop in Iloilo was the first in a series which will take place in other countries in the region.

The Second SPARK-STREAM Workshop on Livelihoods and Languages took place in Tagaytay City, Philippines, from 12-14 June 2003. The outputs of the workshop included drafts of a language-specific “Guide to Learning and Communicating about Livelihoods”, drafts of articles for STREAM Journal and SPARK Newsletter, identification of priorities and practical follow-up for capacity-building in carrying out participatory livelihoods analysis and the development of follow-up plans.

The purpose of this workshop was to build shared understandings of participatory livelihoods concepts and approaches, with emphases on the approaches as ways of thinking and working, and on learning from concrete examples from the experiences of STREAM in Cambodia and Vietnam, and SPARK in the Philippines. One outcome from the first workshop, was that between the two workshops participants would carry out follow-up tasks appropriate to their context.

The visit was to plan the proposed case studies, the State-level Workshops and the consensus-building process of the DFID NRSP Research Project R8100 entitled “Investigating Improved Policy on Aquaculture Service Provision to Poor People”. Meetings were held with GVT staff, jankars and farmers from communities in villages in Orissa, Jharkhand and West Bengal, and officials of Departments of Fisheries in Orissa, West Bengal and Jharkhand. Meetings were also held with GVT, ICAR and the Fisheries Commission.

To organise, to form a union, to become an alliance, is a fundamental of human social behaviour. Farming is one of the earliest examples of sustained collective livelihood. This missive relates some early exciting experiences of associations of farmers that are emerging from amongst tribal communities, which constitute some of the most disadvantaged in India, and the work that these organisations and other partners have made towards poverty alleviation through support for aquaculture.

The three State-level Workshops were held in West Bengal, Jharkhand and Orissa in October 2002. The aim and objectives of the workshops were to contribute to “giving people a voice” in policy-making processes that have an impact on their livelihoods, to understand a process for transacting institutional and policy change, to provide feedback on case studies and to review emerging “indicators of change” and provide input into the subsequent Stakeholders Workshop.

The workshop objectives were to understand a process for transacting institutional and policy change, provide feedback to “finalise” six case studies which document experiences of rural aquaculture services provision from the perspectives of representative recipient and provider groups, to review emerging “indicators of progress” to feed into a consensus-building process and to provide input into a subsequent Policy Review Workshop. It contributed to giving people a voice in policy-making processes that have an impact on their livelihoods.

There are many “stakeholders” involved in the development of schemes to support tribal people to undertake aquaculture. These should include tribal people, researchers, policy-makers and others. Stakeholders often face a situation in which different people have conflicting views. Such differences can be over the appropriate goals of a scheme, the types of outcomes, who should be helped and in what way, or the merit and worth of particular activities.

The aim of the Policy Review Workshop, as with all project activities, was “contributing to ‘giving people a voice’ in policy-making processes that have an impact on their livelihoods”. The workshop objectives included: Through six case studies, stakeholder statements and a street-play, understand the experiences of rural aquaculture services provision from the perspectives of recipients and providers; review the process for transacting policy change and lessons learnt; and make recommendations for policy change based on project outcomes.

The meetings and this document discuss the lessons learnt by project R8100 and consider how the follow on project might take these forward. This document combines the minutes of the Delhi meetings and the Stakeholder meeting in Ranchi, and captures as stories the summary of project R8100 and the visit to Jabarrah. The objectives of R8334 are presented, with comments on these recorded, and the project flow chart and proposed revisions to it are included.

Three consecutive State-level Communications Strategy Workshops were held in the capitals of Jharkhand, Orissa and West Bengal states. The aim of the workshops, as with all project activities, was to “contribute to ‘giving people a voice’ in policy-making processes that have an impact on their livelihoods.” The specific objectives were to review and orient participants to the project’s four outputs and to draft a state-level communications strategy, including ideas for a monitoring and evaluation process.

This Learning Workshop on Livelihoods Analysis was held in Long An Province, Vietnam from 19-20 November 2002. It was part of an ongoing series of activities that will inform the implementation of the Ministry of Fisheries Strategy on Sustainable Aquaculture for Poverty Alleviation under the Vietnamese Government’s Hunger Eradication and Poverty Reduction (HEPR) Program. The recruitment in October of Nguyen Song Ha, STREAM Vietnam Communications Hub Manager, improved preparations within the Vietnamese national context.