Traditional bangus culture

The article presents the traditional milkfish culture practices. The different types of culture ponds are classified according to their uses. Pond preparation, stocking density, pond management and harvesting practices are also discussed.

Modifications in bangus culture

The article presents the milkfish aquaculture techniques in the Philippines modified from the traditional method. These are modular method and silo method, methods on eliminating snails, fertilizer-water replenishment scheme, supplemental feeding and the stunting of fingerlings are also presented.

The basics of cage and pen culture

The article discusses the basics of cage and pen aquaculture. Factors to consider are: site selection; choice of nets, floats, frames, and anchors; and the choice of culture method.

Cage culture of sea bass in Malaysia

The article discusses the cage culture practice of sea bass (Lates calcarifer) in Malaysia. Problems on feed and seed supply and overcrowding are also discussed. Despite these problems, seabass cage culture still continuously booms.

Pearl culture in abalone

The article discusses pearl culture in abalone which is commonly carried out in Japan, Korea, Canada, and the United States. Abalone pearl formation is also discussed.

The long road to freedom: the end of apartheid has signalled a new beginning for women in South Africa’s fisheries but real equality is still a far-off dream

Women in fishing communities are increasingly moving from traditional, community based occupations to seeking employment in the labour market. While this is an opportunity for women, their employment is also largely in the male dominated fishing industry, where job segregation into ‘less skilled and low paid’ jobs for women define employment opportunities. However, engagement as members in local non-government networks help women to challenge these stereotypes. In South Africa, for instance, the recent legislation promoting opportunity for women in male dominated sectors of employment is an opportunity for women to earn wages equal to those of men.

Fisheries research in Uganda

Evolution of fisheries research and FIRRI The earliest approach to fisheries research in Uganda dates from the first fisheries survey of Lake Victoria by Michael Graham between 1927 and 1928 (Graham, 1929). Based on references to the rich fisheries that were reported to Graham, it appears that during the 18th Century, catch per net per night averaged 300 tilapia, a revelation that led Graham to conclude that Lake Victoria is a tilapia lake. The "tilapia" later came to be known as Tilapia esculenta and T variabilis (Oreochromis esculentus and O. variabilis) respectively.

Impacts of fishing gears, fishing methods and fishing effort in the fisheries of Lake Victoria and proposals for management

The initial subsistence fisheries of Lake Victoria were dominated by two indigenous tilapiines, Oreochromis esculentus (Graham 1929) and Oreochromis variabilis Boulenger 1906, exploited with simple fishing crafts and gears that had little impact on the fish stocks (Jackson 1971). Commercial fisheries, targeting the tilapia fishery, started at the beginning of the 20th Centurywhen cotton flax gillnets were first introduced in 1905 into the Nyanza Gulf in Kenya. Gillnets were quickly adopted around the whole lake and consequently, the native methods of fishing soon died out (Jackson 1971). Following the introduction of gillnets, fishing boats and their propulsion methods were also improved. These improvements in fishing capacity coincided with development of urban centres and increasing human population around the lake, which increased the demand for fishery products. To satisfy the increasing demand, fishing effort increased greatly during the 20th century, despite the decline of catch per unit of effort (CPUE) (Jackson 1971; Ogutu-Ohwayo 1990). The initial catch rates of 127mm (5 inch) mesh size gill nets in the tilapia-based fishery, in 1905, was in the range of 50 to 100 fish per gillnet of approximately 50 m in length. However, twenty years later, the catch rates of gillnets of the same mesh size had declined to about six fish per net and gillnets of smaller mesh sizes, which had better catch rates, had been introduced suggesting overfishing (Worthington and Worthington, 1933).

Policies on poverty and the fisheries sector in Uganda: the current policy trends

There are concerns, at least among the proponents of development, on how to link policy development processes in Uganda and the associated transformation of the poor to high standards of living. In fact some questions have been posed as to whether it's the absence of poverty-targeted policies that a good proportion of individuals or communities are still poor. In the fisheries sector where most of the fish dependent communities live, poverty indications are still prevalent although arguments have been put that current reforms in the sector have transformed the lives of the fish dependent communities. The 1999/2000 household survey report indicates that the poverty levels reduced to 35% of Uganda's total population from 44% in 1997. The question that arose, which still arises anyway, was to define who is actually poor. When measuring poverty one is ultimately interested in the 'standards of living' of individuals especially those, whose standards of living are inadequate. The basic element of measuring this inadequacy/adequacy, at least in Uganda, is to use the household income or consumption per adult equivalent. Studies have demonstrated that household consumption expenditure is a good approximation of household income1. Therefore, for purpose of this report, we define poor households to mean based on that that one adopted by the Ministry of Finance to mean "households whose expenditure per adult equivalent falls below the poverty line 3 ". Many government documents report that the poverty line is one dollar a day. Therefore someone is below the poverty line if he or she lives on less than one dollar a day. In this paper, we analyse the evolution of poverty-driven policies that have been put in place by government and how these policies are shifting or are likely to shift the lives of fish dependent communities. We argue that combinations of poverty-policies are being translated into increased incomes and welfare of most individuals in the fisheries sector. The reasons for this shift, we argue, is as a result of a combination of factors all supported by non other that poverty-led government policies.