The Asia Regional Advisory Group on Aquatic Animal Health meets annually to discuss regional health issues including emerging disease threats. This report includes a review of regional disease status circa 2010, global and regional disease reporting arrangements, global issues and standards, progress in implementation of the the Regional Technical Guidelines on Health management for the Responsible Movement of Live Aquatic Animals, identification and designation of regional aquatic animal health resources and regional and international cooperation.

In Vietnam, small scale farmers and other stakeholders involved in aquaculture perceive that climate changes such as frequent extreme weather events have serious impacts on their farming systems. Farmers have started to adapt by changing the management practices. Institutional initiatives that have been introduced includes provision of budget for climate change response for aquaculture, aquaculture area planning and monitoring, government financial support, policy on mangrove planting for coastal protection and development of farmer associations.

The conference was organised by FAO, the Thai Department of Fisheries and NACA and held in the Mövenpick Resort and Spa, Phuket, Thailand, 22-25 September. The conference was the third in a series of aquaculture development conferences, following on from the Conference on Aquaculture in the Third Millennium held in Bangkok 2000, and the FAO Technical Conference on Aquaculture, held in Kyoto 1976.

In this issue:

Recent developments and future prospects of inland aquaculture in Asia. Factors influencing success of Penaeus vannamei culture. Freshwater prawn farming in a carbon-nitrogen controlled periphyton-based system: A sustainable approach to increase stagnant pond productivity. Constraints to fish production in community ponds in Orissa, India. Continued confidence in inland fisheries developmentg of a Sri Lankan youth begins to pay off. The Asia-Pacific Quarterly Aquatic Animal Disease Report: 12 years and beyond.

Infectious myonecrosis is a viral disease caused by infectious myonecrosis virus. It affects Pacific white shrimp Penaeus vannamei, tiger shrimp P. monodon and blue shrimp P. stylirostris. IMN is associated with heavy losses in farmed shrimp of 40-70%. Originally reported from Brazil, outbreaks were first reported in Indonesia in May 2006. With the current spread of the disease there is a high threat of the disease spreading to neighbouring P. vannamei-producing countries.