There is a growing appreciation for the role of aquaculture in improving food and nutrition security, as well as diversifying livelihoods in Timor-Leste. The Timor-Leste government’s National Aquaculture Development Strategy (NADS; 2012-30) aims to increase domestic aquaculture production to 12,000 tons and per capita fish consumption to 15 kg annually by 2030. However, the aquaculture development in the country has been constrained by the limited availability of seed (fingerlings) and feed, as well as knowledge and skills about aquaculture.
In response, WorldFish started working in partnership with Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF) and private sectors since 2014 with the aim of supporting implementation of NADS. In the initial years (2015- 2019), the research and development efforts focussed strongly on introduction of Genetically Improved Farmed Tilapia (GIFT) in government hatchery in Ermera, and multiplication and dissemination of GIFT seed through the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model hatchery; preparation of feed based on locally available resources (e.g., Leucaena leaves, corn meal, rice bran), in situ production of natural food through maintaining green water, and introduction of a Better Management Practices (BMPs) guidelines. Farmers adopting BMPs achieved fish yield averaging 4.3±1.5 t/ha. With the average production cost of USD 1.5/kg and fish sale price of USD 4.0/kg, farmers received net profit of USD 2.5/kg. Nevertheless, scaling of GIFT was challenging due to limited availability of feed ingredients in the country.
Hence, testing and validation of grow-out technologies for sustainable intensification of GIFT have been conducted in recent years (2020-2022). The technological interventions included: increasing stocking density from 3 to 5 fingerlings/m2; feeding fish with high quality imported commercial feed pellets; and maintaining pond water green to enhance in situ production of natural food. By adopting the new recommendations, GIFT farmers achieved an extrapolated fish yield of 12.4±0.1 t/ha/cycle and increased net profit by 135±3% (Table1).
To facilitate scaling of GIFT, private sectors are being supported to import feed in bulk to make it available at a reasonable price, live and fresh tilapia markets have been established, and Local Service Providers (LSPs) are organised to facilitate input supply and output marketing. However, continuous technical backstopping and engagement of public and private sectors are crucial. Given the similar agro-ecological contexts, the aquaculture development model of Timor-Leste has potential for replication in the small island nations of the Asia-Pacific region.