If the place where fish live is good and healthy, fish rarely die from diseases. If we stress fish by roughly handling them, by keeping too many together, or by not feeding them well, they may suffer from disease. Depending on the disease, we may see lots of fish die in a short time, small numbers of fish deaths every day, reduced growth, marks on the fish, or a change in the way they look or swim.

This story comes from Lake Keenjhar near Thatta town Sindh Province in Pakistan. It contrasts the lives of women in the fishing village of Chilya with the life of an influential business man with a fish farm on the opposite side of the highway.

Fresh fish is so popular in much of eastern India that harvesting will usually draw a crowd of pond side customers. Marketing is no problem so long as the quantities are small. When bulk quantities are fished out a trader, wholesaler or a middleman may take the fish and depending on the distance, time of the day and season, transport them to the market with or without ice.

When people talk about growing fish, many say their biggest problem was getting started. In Delhi in April 2003 farmers and officials met with policy makers and said that one of their most pressing recommendations for change was to the way information is made available. They asked for a single-point, under-one-roof center, near to their place, where they could get much of what they needed.

These guidelines illustrate good practice for broodstock handling and management using practices that are suitable for small-scale operations. This document is also available in Oriya.

A bold bid by women in Kandhkelgaon Village, West Bengal, to break out of their poverty trap. This story describes how women who could no longer make a living from weaving turned to aquaculture. Success came, not just through income generation but by reducing the cost of being poor. The story highlights the influences that constrain and enhance development, including the sheer bravery and entrepreneurial spirit of people who are poor. 

A closer look at the benefits of working together, the evolution of a federation of aquaculture self-help groups and a one-stop aqua shop in rural West Bengal. India has the largest concentration of tribal population in the world. For a long time now, voices have been raised in support of disadvantaged social groups that are trying to derive a livelihood from limited resources in remote rural areas in India.

A closer look at the evolution of successful aquaculture self-help groups in rural West Bengal, the discovery of new uses for local resource systems and the energising effect of flexible rural credit.

Any pond can be used to grow fish, but a pond that is dug specially for fish culture usually has a regular shape, a flat bottom with a slight slope along its length. When deciding where to locate a new pond, you should consider the landscape, land use, soil texture (15% clay is best for pond construction and water holding), water supply (consider quality, quantity and seasonality), security (from theft) and convenience (maybe close to your house).

This report provides insight into the status of the marine ornamental fish trade in Indonesia, including policy environment, collection, chain of custody, distribution channels, markets and constraints. The report also reviews the livelihoods of poor stakeholders in market chains including economic and financial aspects, natural and physical resources, livelihood patterns, social structures. The report provides recommendations for policy makers and stakeholders in improving the livelihoods of poor stakeholders in marine ornamental fish collection and market chains.

This report provides insight into the status of the shrimp trade in Vietnam, including policy environment, export capacity, production chain, distribution channels, markets and constraints. The report also reviews the livelihoods of poor stakeholders, including women, in shrimp market chains from input service supply, seed and broodstock supply, grow out, trade and processing. The report provides recommendations for policy makers and stakeholders in improving the livelihoods of poor stakeholders in shrimp market chains.

The purpose of the project was to investigate international trade in fisheries products and its relationship to poverty alleviation and livelihoods of poor aquatic resource users in developing countries in Asia, and to identify options to improve the effectiveness of poverty reduction through international seafood trade. The project directly addressed the EC-PREP priority area of trade and development, and indirectly provided valuable insight to two other priority areas: food security and sustainable rural development; and institutional capacity building.

Fish culture is where people own and look after a stock of fish. This might involve regular stocking, fertilisation and feeding, protection from predators and disease and taking care of the environment.

When selecting a good place for a pond, an engineer may seek advice from local people, a biologist or an economist. It may be difficult to find an ideal site but it is necessary to look at the available sites before the work on pond building begins – so that it holds water, does not collapse or cost too much and will not waste effort and money. There are lots of things to think about before finally recommending a site.

This is a historical report describing the establishment of a marine finfish and shrimp aquaculture research programme by the SEAFDEC Aquaculture Department at its Tigbauan station. The report describes the facilities that were established, with diagrammes of the facility layout and list of personnel. It also summaries research findings and makes recommendations on future research directions, including on broodstock manturation, development of larval and compound feeds, health and extension of technology.

This presentation provides an overview of Vietnamese experience on the implementation of better management Practices (BMPs) and good aquaculture practices (GAP) in shrimp aquaculture. Practices were implemented collectively by encouraging small-scale farmers to form groups that collaborate on issues such as screening seed for disease and improving water quality management. Improvements to crop outcomes were observed. The results presented include the profitability of BMP adopted ponds.

Sổ tay nẩy với mục đích giúp đỡ cho cán bộ khuyến ngư hướng dẫn người nông dân kỹ thuật nuôi tôm nhằm mục đích đạt được sản lương và thu nhập ngày càng cao trong hệ thống nuôi kết hơp tôm - rừng ở Đồng bằng Sông Cửu Long. Với những kỹ thuật đơn giản, thông thường giúp cho ngư dân từng bước gia tăng sản lương mà ít bị rủi ro.

This manual has been prepared to assist extension officers to advise farmers on techniques for improving yields and farm income in mixed shrimp farming-mangrove forestry farming systems in the Mekong Delta. It focuses mainly on simple, common sense techniques that will allow farmers to make step-by-step improvements to production without taking unnecessary risks. The manual is based on a 6-year collaborative research and development project between the Governments of Vietnam and Australia.

This manual has been prepared to assist farmers with techniques for improving yields and farm income in mixed shrimp farming-mangrove forestry farming systems in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam. It focuses mainly on simple, common sense techniques that will allow farmers to make step-by-step improvements to production without taking unnecessary risks. The techniques and recommendations covered in this manual are based on the experience of a 6-year collaborative research and development project between Vietnam and Australia.

This guide outlines a process for building capacity in participatory livelihoods approaches and carrying out livelihoods analysis. The process is about a way of working that enables development practitioners to better understand how people live and to learn how others understand their own livelihoods. This particular process emerged from experiences of working with government agencies and non-governmental organisations who themselves work with agricultural communities whose members have limited resources, in other words, poor rural fishers and farmers.