Introduction

The global aquaculture industry is growing rapidly, contributing significantly to food production, employment, and economic development. In Africa, the potential of aquaculture development for Africa’s economic growth is well recognized and supported with a considerable “blue food” demand that cannot be met by capture fisheries. However, challenges persist in the development of the sector, especially in Least Developed Countries (LDCs), hindering sustainable growth. These challenges include inadequate infrastructure, limited access to inputs and credit, technical and managerial capacity constraints, limited specific regulatory frameworks and policies, weak value chain development, and climate change impacts. Addressing these challenges requires substantial human, technical and financial resources, with public and private investments playing a crucial role.

FAO, in partnership with the World Bank and the Aquaculture Network for Africa (ANAF) successfully organized a Special Day at WAS AFRAQ in Zambia. Building on the outcomes of this event and strengthening the partnership by joining hands with the African Union (AUDANEPAD) and collaborating with key regional aquaculture partners a follow up Special Day is being organized at AFRAQ in Tunisia to enhance understanding of relevant initiatives being developed and implemented by organizations including FAO, ANAF, NEPAD, WBG among other partners to unlock aquaculture potential in the region. The special day will build on the discussion and recommendations provided during the previous special day conducted in Zambia, and will be structured round three major themes: (1) Guidelines, frameworks and toolkits for sustainable aquaculture development and viable aquaculture investments; (2) Knowledge sharing and dissemination in the African context; and (3) Technical innovations including management of genetic resources, feed production, integrated and restorative aquaculture, among other topics.

Meeting the growth expectations of the aquaculture sector in the region in terms of volume and quality for the domestic, regional and global markets, is a task that requires coherent planning adapted to the regional context, as well as the establishment of strategic and long-lasting collaborations between public and private sector actors.

Learning from how other regions have evolved and learned from their mistakes along the path of the sector’s development is also key to avoiding frustrations for producers, investors and governments. The natural resources for aquaculture production exist in the region, the workforce is clearly present, but the other pieces of the puzzle for sustainable production, such as availability of farm inputs, technology, knowledge, investment and regulatory frameworks, must also be present and adapted to the regional context.

The Special Day will inform about activities, projects, initiatives and analytical work undertaken by different organizations and serve as a platform to foster dialogue among participants to facilitate brainstorming and experience sharing on challenges and strategies for enhancing investments in aquaculture in Africa.

Objective

Inform participants about initiatives undertaken by organizations such as FAO, NEPAD, ANAF, WB, and other regional partners to address challenges and gaps hindering sustainable African aquaculture development. Additionally, the event aims to facilitate brainstorming and experience sharing on feasible and viable strategies to transform these challenges into opportunities. The event will be divided into three technical sessions discussing key topics in relation to Guidelines and governance, knowledge dissemination and sharing, and technology innovations.

Expected outputs

• Special Day Report summarizing key findings from each session and recommendations from the audience.
• List of follow-ups regionally relevant themes and topics to be prepared for a next session of the Special Day to be organized at the WAS-Africa Conference 2025.