A scoping Meeting on “Sustainable Aquaculture for Poverty Alleviation” was held in Hanoi , 23-25 May 2000. The meeting was held to review the role of aquaculture development (freshwater, brackish water and marine environments) in poverty alleviation and hunger eradication in Vietnam, to identify strategies for the more effective application of aquaculture and aquatic resources management to poverty alleviation, to review a draft framework for a programme on sustainable aquaculture for poverty alleviation and to prepare an appropriate action plan.

To review mud crab aquaculture in Australia and Southeast Asia, ACIAR funded a scoping study, followed by a workshop to review the study and discuss status and problems in different regions of Australia and Southeast Asia. The primary conclusion from the scoping study, verified by workshop discussion, was that the substantial crab farming operations which exist throughout Southeast Asia are still mainly based on wild caught crablets.

This document provides the report of the joint APEC/FAO/NACA/SEMARNAP workshop on “Trans-boundary aquatic animal pathogen transfer and the development of harmonized standards on aquaculture health management,” held at Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, 2000. The workshop reviewed the impacts of trans-boundary pathogens, management strategies and harmonisation of of aquatic animal health management measures. Participants adopted the “Puerto Vallarta Plan of Action” incorporating recommendations for to control the spread of serious aquatic animal pathogens.

This report provides a background to the issues of focusing aquaculture on poverty alleviation based on the conclusions of an FAO/NACA Expert Consultation, which was organised in order to provide field-level professionals in Asia with a unique opportunity to come together to share experience on working in the field of poverty alleviation and aquaculture, and to prepare a platform for future networking.

The Expert Consultation on Aquaculture Education in the Asia-Pacific was held in, Vietnam, 2000. The consultation was the final activity of APEC project FWG/02/99 “Collaborative Aquaculture Education Program”. This report gives the findings and papers presented to the Expert Consultation, including the follow-up recommendations for establishing an Aquaculture Educational Consortium, in the form of a network, comprising academic and training institutions in the Asia and Oceania regions.