WWW.WAS.ORG • WORLD AQUACULTURE • SEPTEMBER 2024 11 CHAPTER REPORTS As part of our strategy for reaching out to our members and key national and regional associations, especially in key producer countries in Africa, I had the opportunity to attend this year’s well-promoted and successful Aquaculture Ghana 2024 Conference, on behalf of the WAS. This took place in April 2024. I was inspired to see and interact with many aquaculture value chain actors, including WAS members there — all with the goal to transform aquaculture development in Ghana. The Aquaculture Ghana 2024 conference was strategic as it gave a foundational basis for hosting a future Aquaculture Africa event for the first time in West Africa, hopefully in 2026. Ghana has long been identified as a strategic host country. The WAS also featured at the Awards Night which honored outstanding individuals, talents, companies, and projects that have significantly contributed to Ghana’s aquaculture industry. The event recognized stakeholders championing environmental sustainability, innovation, corporate social responsibility, and research, among others. In 2023, the Ghana Chamber of Aquaculture honored the WAS AC for its role as a special vehicle for aquaculture development in Africa. Ghana has undoubtedly become a key pillar on freshwater aquaculture development in Africa, having produced a record 133,000 metric tonnes (mostly tilapias) in 2022, according to the FAO, arguably becoming one of Africa’s fastest growing aquaculture countries with well-established value chains. It is indeed delightful to share the numerous collaborations between the World Aquaculture Society -African Chapter (WASAC) and the Ghana Chamber of Aquaculture over the years. Our association and partnership began around 2020 and have improved over the years. The World Aquaculture Society -African Chapter (WAS-AC) and the Ghana Chamber of Aquaculture jointly organized and hosted regional conferences -1st and 2nd Regional Conferences on Aquaculture in West Africa, in 2021 and 2023, and the Aquaculture Ghana Conference 2024. Members of WAS-AC including myself, were key players in the planning stage as committee members in the 1st Hybrid Conference in 2021. I facilitated the participation of key stakeholders such as the Regional Officer of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization at the conference and was actively involved in online activities giving the summary brief of the conference during the closing session. The administrative officer of the WAS-AC was physically at the meeting to represent the Chapter. Subsequently in the 2013 and 2014 conferences, I delivered addresses at the opening ceremonies and in giving out awards to deserving members of the Ghana Chamber of Aquaculture, at the closing ceremonies. The WAS-AC provides media platforms for advertising and promoting aquaculture activities and programs of the Ghana Chamber of Aquaculture. We also support service delivery and presentations of policy matters to the government The World Aquaculture Society West Africa Region (WASAWAR) provided learning platforms at the Aquaculture Ghana Conference 2024 by organizing a one-day workshop in Accra, Ghana, on May 29th, 2024, on ‘Exploring potential collaboration models for sustainable aquaculture development in West Africa’. The presentations and discussions delivered science, technology, education, and information exchange on aquaculture. Preparations for the upcoming 3rd Annual International Conference and Exposition of the African Chapter of the World Aquaculture Society (AFRAQ2024), are ongoing earnestly. The event, which takes place in Hammamet, Tunisia on 19-22 November 2024 will be hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture, Water Resources and Fisheries with support from other national entities in Tunisia. We encourage all aquaculture actors from around the world to register and prepare to attend the event. — Foluke O. Areola, President African Chapter
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