Attending the conference were representatives of the units under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Directorate of Fisheries, the Provincial Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development, research institutes, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the US Soybean Export Council (USSEC), and other news agencies.
Over the past years, the Vietnam’s marine aquaculture sector has made significant progress, the area and output of marine aquaculture has increased continuously over the years. The main marine species of Vietnam are marine fish, mollusks, lobsters, crabs and seaweed. In 2017, the total area of Vietnam’s marine aquaculture reached approximately 246 thousand hectares with output reaching over 377 thousand tons. The area is mainly concentrated in some provinces/cities such as Quang Ninh, Hai Phong, Phu Yen, Khanh Hoa, Binh Thuan, Ba Ria - Vung Tau, Ben Tre, Ca Mau, Kien Giang. Seaculture products of Vietnam such as clams, scallops, grouper, seabass, pomfret, pilot fish... have been present in big markets such as the USA, Europe, Japan, China, Singapore...
However, nowadays marine aquaculture is small, fragmented, applied technology is still backward, the potential and advantages of Vietnam are not fully exploited. In addition, fingerlings are still dependent mainly on natural exploitation and import sources. Processed products are mainly raw processed with little added value. There is no incentive to attract investment in this field as well as limited capital and preferential policies.
At the workshop, Deputy General Director of Fisheries, Tran Dinh Luan said that with a coastline of more than 3,260 km, there are many large and small islands, bays ... Vietnam has many potentials and advantages to develop marine farming. Especially, the sea areas in the west (with less stormy), the sea areas in the Central have the advantage of depth, so the application of advanced technology will ensure the development of marine fish species farming in large scale.
According to the development orientation of Vietnam fisheries sector, marine aquaculture is identified as one of the three main pillars of the sector's development direction in the coming time. In order to develop sustainable marine aquaculture, it is necessary to develop in the direction of industry, with the participation of enterprises, large scale, modern technology and environmental protection. The marine culture industry also helps to create new supporting industries, new jobs and livelihoods, increase incomes for fishermen, ensure social security, contribute to poverty reduction and national security and defense of the Vietnamese sea and islands.
Therefore, it is now necessary to develop a strategy to develop marine aquaculture in a uniform way for all stages from production of fingerling, feed, processing industries, supporting industries, scientific and technology application in marine farming as well as market development. In addition, it is necessary to issue policies to attract investment from enterprises to develop large-scale aquaculture zones, which are the basis for planning the strategy for marine aquaculture development.
The draft strategy on marine aquaculture development in Vietnam has set the target that by 2030, the marine aquaculture sector will become a concentrated, synchronous, modern, diversified, highly productive industry with rational structure and production organization, competitiveness and integration; associated with environmental protection. The industry is to strive for 300,000 ha of marine breeding areas, including 30,000 ha of offshore areas; area of farming near the shore, on the island is 20 thousand ha; the tidal area is 250 thousand hectares; the volume of cages is 9 million m3.
By 2050, Vietnam will become a country with advanced marine aquaculture industry, sustainable development, modern technology and scientific management. The marine aquaculture industry becomes a major part of our marine economy, contributing 12-15% of GDP. Vietnam will become the leading marine aquaculture country in the ASEAN and Asia, ranking in the top 5 in the world in terms of output and value of farmed seafood export. By 2050, aquaculture production will reach 3.0 million tons/ year; value of trade and export will be over 10 billion USD.
At the workshop, some participants asked questions about how to secure the marine operations in the context of the current complex situation of the East Sea. Besides the technology of producing cages, auxiliary works to develop marine aquaculture meet the weather conditions in Vietnam or not? The issue of product consumption was also interested by the participants.
According to Dr. Patrick White, representative of the United States Soybean Export Council, there are now many wave and wind-resistant cage technologies available in the world to help reduce the catastrophic risk for high efficiency of marine culture. There is even a technology to grow sea fish on land. The technology of producing feeds suitable for aquaculture is also available. Vietnam has many potential and advantages to develop marine farming. And if there are mechanisms and policies for marine culture development, areas with potential and advantages will have access to science and technology in marine culture development.
Assessing the development trend of the world, experts in the field of fisheries said that marine aquaculture is a common trend in the world. Compared to land animal husbandry, aquaculture is generally much more highly valued for economic and environmental benefits. In terms of economics, aquaculture is more productive than livestock and poultry, thanks to lower feed conversion ratio (FCR). Environmentally, aquaculture does not cause much harm to the environment in comparison with livestock and poultry ... In addition, consumer demand for aquatic products tends to increase, so development of aquaculture is a global trend to meet food demand in the context of rising world population (which may reach 9 billion in 2050).
Nhu Nguyet