This collection of publications originates from the International Consortium Program on Shrimp Farming and the Environment, which was implemented by the World Bank, the Network of Aquaculture Centres in Asia-Pacific (NACA), the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The consortium supported 35 complementary case studies prepared by more than 100 researchers in more than 20 shrimp farming countries.

The sixteen papers in this volume were largely based on the data from a survey of more than 5,000 shrimp and close to 6,000 carp farms in sixteen countries and territories in the Asia-Pacific region. They provide an economic and technical efficiency of production analysis for Asian shrimp and carp farming systems. This survey was conducted under the ADB/NACA regional study and workshop on aquaculture sustainability and the environment (RETA 5534).

Knowledge of community fisheries and their capacity is a pre-requisite for co-management. This report illustrates the development of a pilot data collection, sharing and interrogation mechanisms for key information in support of co-management, identifying information requirements and procedures for the transmission and sharing of information between relevant stakeholders. A combination of focus group interviews with the community committee and village leaders, and participatory rural appraisal was used as a means of information compilation.

The NACA STREAM Initiative has been working with issues relating to livelihoods, policy and institutional development and communications throughout Asia-Pacific. Recently this has included work in India with indigenous communities supporting people to have a voice in policy making processes. There appear to be some parallels between this work and the objectives of Kimberley Aquaculture Aboriginal Corporation and also the Agriculture Fisheries and Forestry Australia Indigenous Aquaculture Unit, National Aquaculture Development Strategy for Indigenous Communities in Australia.

The aim of this report is to identify and recommend methods of communication that are appropriate to aquatic resources management stakeholders, focusing in particular on poor rural communities in Cambodia. As the Cambodian government begins to work more closely with local aquatic resources managers from poor rural communities, increased attention is being paid to the use of communication strategies and tools, in particular by the newly established Community Fisheries Development Office of the Department of Fisheries.

Cambodia is one of the poorest countries in the world; much of its population live in rural areas and many live below the local poverty line. The management of common property aquatic resources is of over-riding importance to food security and sustainable rural development in Cambodia. The key groups of poor people who use aquatic resources as part of their diverse livelihoods portfolios are subsistence fishers, small-scale aquaculture practitioners and aquatic resources collectors.

This paper examines farming practices in marine fish cage aquaculture in southeast Asia with reference to feed and feeding. It proposes a range of reforms to improve the economic performance of the sector, including selective breeding, use of hatchery-reared fingerings, modernisation of cage systems, improved feed management and use of dry pelleted feeds, relocation of cages to better quality sites and a greater degree of government and private sector co-operation in research and development.

This study of the livelihood of farmers and fishermen is based on the information provided by the villagers representing 142 households in the village. There had been some changes that impacted on the livelihood of villagers, especially in natural resources. The population is constantly growing which leads to an increase in natural resource utilisation and ultimately their degradation. The villagers usually suffer from diseases such as malaria, fever and dengue fever.

This is the report of a livelihoods study team working together with villagers from Saob Leu Village in Kratie Province, Cambodia from 10-15 July 2002. The team worked with 1530 villagers who volunteered to participate and represented the 177 households in the village. The villagers rely mainly on farming, with dry season rice being the most important crop. Most villagers are involved in small-scale fishing, with some having other skills.

This is the report of a livelihoods study team working together with villagers from Trorbek Pork in Kandal Province, Cambodia. In Trorbek Pork Village there are 140 families and a total population of 700 persons. The primary occupation of villagers was farming dry season rice on 47 ha, and in addition cultivating vegetables such as corn, mung bean, wax gourd, chilli and sesame on 15 ha. Secondary occupations included fishing, garment making, singing, laboring and repairing machines.