Algeria is a marine and Saharan country where central fisheries resources come from the Mediterranean Sea. Annual marine catches are estimated at 100,000 tons, and inland fisheries in dam lakes produce about 3,000 tons of freshwater fish, mainly Chinese carp (MPPH, 2019).
Algeria has a significant deficit in the production of fish from marine fisheries. The average fish consumption is 4.5 kg per inhabitant in a year (FAO, 2020). Hence, the importance of meeting the demand through aquaculture development is of paramount importance.
We present here the situation of the national aquaculture in order to target some problems that hinder or delay the achievement of the objectives defined by the Ministry of Fishing and Fisheries Productions. In particular, the issues related to the diversification of farmed species and their feeding.
The survey results show that aquaculture in Algeria has undergone several changes, passing through an activity of stocking and restocking natural and artificial water bodies. Currently, it is practiced in different production systems including semi-intensive culture in tanks, ponds, intensive production in cages, and traditional extensive production in integrated fish farming systems.
At the end of the year 2020, out of the 731 private investment projects submitted, 265 acts of concessions have been issued. There are now 86 aquaculture projects in operation, all fields combined , and 63 projects that will eventually be in operation in 2021. Aquaculture p roduction data was reported at 5367 Metric Tons in 2020. The current aquaculture production comes from: (1) Marine fish farming offshore in floating cages practiced by private operators producing about 3236 Tons of sea bream and sea bass. (2) Shellfish farming practiced by private operators producing 107 tons of Mediterranean mussels and oysters. (3) Continental fishing by private concessionaires in dams and reservoirs, for species such as common carp, Chinese carp, pikeperch, black bass and barbel fish producing about 1600 Tons. (4 ) Integrated Aquaculture-A griculture (IAA) practiced mainly in the south by agricultural farmers, for species such as Tilapia and catfish. In this context, more than 800 farmers raising fish in ponds for irrigation producing about 542 Tons of fresh fish, using the nutrient-rich water to irrigate agricultural crops.