“It Takes a Network: Rethinking Aquaculture Through Innovative Partnerships”

How has aquaculture developed since you started as a researcher?

It's interesting to see what has happened over these 4-5 decades in the development of modern aquaculture. It originated in Japan, but Europe was one of the first to develop the technology. It has also been interesting to see how that technology has been transferred back to Asia and introduced to Africa and Latin America. When I look back at the situation today in Africa and compare it to the one in Asia, there are huge differences; 40 years ago, they were in the same position.

What interests me is the different international approaches to assisting and developing aquaculture in Asia and Africa. Asia has been a big success. The greatest expansion of aquaculture in the past decades took place in Asia. There, we have seen a tremendous development in ownership, and with ownership, I mean that in Asia, the development was early taken over by all stakeholders on the local level. This was done mainly through investing in training. People have received master’s training, BSc training, and PhD training in aquaculture at universities in Europe, the United States, and Japan.

One example is Vietnam. Forty years ago, it was one of the poorest countries in the world with limited traditional extensive aquaculture. People from Vietnam were trained, and now they are in leading positions in the government, universities, and the private sector. They have been able to develop their policies within aquaculture in very close contact with the rest of the global development of new technologies and new opportunities but still control their development.

We have seen a lot of investments in development cooperation in Africa, but we have approached it a different way by sending experts from Europe and America to Africa. This is not the same as training the persons who later will decide on policy making in the African countries. So, my first observation is that Africa is lacking ownership when it comes to aquaculture. Therefore, it would be good to see where a bridge can be made between Africa and Asia.

It can be in different forms, like short-term training. I’ll give a very concrete example. East Africa has a big potential for mud crab farming. They are just starting to build the first hatcheries. Vietnam developed hatchery technology and innovative techniques to produce mud crab for four or five years. In Vietnam, there are already more than 300 hatcheries, many of which are family operations producing 1.2 billion crablets per year. And this is a new, very successful business.

Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, and several countries in East Africa have the potential to develop a similar mud crab farming business. I hope that links between Africa and Asia can create opportunities for training in the public and private sectors. Not to copy paste but to learn the concepts. In fact, backyard family operations can be very successful in developing a new industry and, in that way, have a much quicker technology transfer. My recommendation is to see where there are opportunities for site visits, training, and linking the different stakeholders. Not only the policy makers or the scientists but also entrepreneurs and the private sector. This approach would really help Africa to advance at a faster pace. Instead of sending people to Europe for training, there should be north-south-south partnership with the north as the facilitator bringing partners together from the different regions for peer learning.

What is your vision for a sustainable aquatic food system in Africa in 10 years?

We see too much monoculture in Africa that is copied from European aquaculture. Monoculture means an impact on the environment. I often say that aquaculture is at a turning point. We need more integrated systems. In many Asian places, we can learn from a more integrated approach where you recycle nutrients that are considered waste. We need to consider the ecological topics related to aquaculture. The waste produced by fish can be converted to fertilizer for plants or as a direct food for molluscs or filter-feeding fish. We are far behind in the Western world in integrating what FAO calls extractive aquaculture, such as molluscs and seaweed. We do not have to bring food to these production farms. Instead, they extract nutrients that are already available in the coastal areas. And that's a very ecologically friendly aquaculture.

Other examples are the switch to organic rice farming as successfully practiced in China with already more than 2 million hectares converted to this more environmentally friendly farming allowing the old principle of integrating rice farming with aquaculture, not with carp as in ancient times but with crustaceans that have a higher market value, such a crayfish, mitten crab and prawns. Aquaponics is another example of such integrated systems

What are the main challenges and solutions you see regarding aquaculture and aquatic food systems?

At the global level, we are at a time when modern aquaculture activities that impact the environment need to be integrated with a more ecological approach, like mollusc farming, and seaweed farming. This is already a commercial reality in Asia but not yet a commercial reality in Europe. Europe has some positive developments, but we need to look at our doorstep. In the coastal areas, for example, windmill parks integrate fish cages with molluscs and seaweed. But what I understand from many European fish farmers is that it is not evident that from one year to the next, they will move from a monoculture to integrated farming because of the extra costs. When involved with Africa and African developments, we should keep in mind that the approach we have followed in Europe is not the one we should advocate. We must realize that we need to innovate our aquaculture developments, and that Asia is where we can look.

How should the multistakeholder networks be organized?

I'm really impressed to see the initiatives already undertaken in the developing world.  Hearing about the networks in Africa. There are a lot of similar networks in Asia where they can learn from each other. I highly recommend that there should be exchanges between these networks to share similar difficulties, similar conflicts, and how you can resolve them.

The interview was made during the Global Science-Policy Lab on Aquatic Food Systems in Brussels 3-4 March 2025 (SASi-SPi project funded by the European Union).