The main objective of this symposium is to provide a venue for information sharing on extension of small-scale aquaculture, specifically targeted to those individuals and relevant organizations involved in various aquaculture development projects. The symposium will also assess and present the effectiveness of “farmer-to-farmer extension” approach in the implementation of relevant aquaculture development projects in the region. The symposium was organised for stakeholders in JICA-assisted projects in SE Asia and Africa.

In this issue:

Culture-based fisheries exchange visit from Lao to Cambodia. National Fish Day, Cambodia. WAS Adelaide: Special Session on Regional Cooperation for Improved Biosecurity. Inbreeding and disease in tropical shrimp aquaculture: a reappraisal and caution. Shrimp EMS/AHPND Special Session at DAA9. 2nd International Symposium on Aquaculture and Fisheries Education. Report on Sustainable Fisheries and Aquaculture for Food Security and Nutrition.

Under the ACIAR-funded project Culture-based fisheries development in Lao PDR and Cambodia, a monitoring team recently visited both countries to observe progress by participating community groups and to provide guidance for the next stocking season. The project is working with rural villages to implement culture-based fisheries as a community activity, where the work, management and benefits are shared by local residents.

In this issue:

Special session on regional cooperation for improved biosecurity. Pond aquaculture taking off in Nepal. Introduction of culture-based fishery practices in small water bodies in Cambodia: Issues and strategies. A case study on polychaete fishery by the Irular tribal fishing community on the Tamil Nadu coast. Use of pangasius pond sediment for rooftop bag gardening: Potential for rural-urban integrated agriculture-horticulture. Culture-based fisheries exchanges between Lao PDR and Cambodia.

Artisanal shrimp aquaculture is in a disease-induced crisis of lost production. The immediate cause is biological: rising levels of inbreeding and a strong, positive relationship between inbreeding and disease. The root cause is social: a nexus of human behavior in which breeders protect their intellectual property by generating inbreeding, local hatcheries sell copied, inbred shrimp, and farmers suffer the consequences.