FAO Director-General QU Dongyu met with Ms Emma Metieh Glassco, Director-General of the National Fisheries and Aquaculture Authority of the Republic of Liberia.
Eduardo Soteras
The Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), QU Dongyu, met with different African leaders (Liberia, Republic of Madagascar, Comoros, Nigeria, and Cote d’Ivoire) during the 33rd Session of the FAO Regional Conference for Africa (ARC33).
Thus, Dongyu took the opportunity to listen to their requests and concerns about the growth and needs of the aquaculture sector in these countries.
The ministerial segment of the 33rd Session of the FAO Regional Conference for Africa (ARC33) was hosted in Rabat, Morocco, from 18-20 April and focused on Africa strategizing on the path forward towards agrifood systems transformation.
The Director General recalled the Director-General of the National Fisheries and Aquaculture Authority of the Republic of Liberia, Emma Metieh Glassco, FAO's commitment to providing the country with all the technical expertise needed, especially to enhance aquaculture production.
The African leader and FAO representative both agreed to work together on the agrifood system transformation, focusing on the aquaculture sector.
The Minister for Fisheries and the Blue Economy of the Republic of Madagascar, Paubert Tsimanaoraty Mahatante, requested more support for the fisheries sector.
According to Mahatante, the Republic of Madagascar still faced huge fish loss due to a lack of proper equipment. Also, he pointed out the need for modern fishing equipment to reduce post-harvesting loss. Furthermore, he asked for more technical support on marine data capturing.
Finally, the Minister mentioned how the country is still reliant on imports and heavy tax burden leads to more expensive fish products
The Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries, Environment, Tourism, and Handicrafts of Comoros, Houmed M'SAIDIE, explained that the archipelagic country suffers a seven-month good fishing season and a five-month bad fishing season.
Therefore, he requested the FAO Director-General technical expertise to help them develop their aquaculture initiatives.
The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Abubakar Shaib Kyari, highlighted the support FAO gave to the country's projects and programs.
However, he asked for more water resources management to increase irrigation capabilities for better production. He underlined the role of solar energy to enhance irrigation schemes and aquaculture.
Under the FISH4ACP initiative, FAO joined in 2023 a new plan to support farmed catfish in Nigeria. The goal was to make African catfish production more resilient, efficient, and environmentally friendly.
