South-South Knowledge Exchange Advances Sustainable Aquaculture 

WorldFish Bangladesh organized an exchange visit for a government delegation and farmers from Kenya as part of the Asia–Africa Bluetech Superhighway (AABS) project. The aim of this visit was to enable peer-to-peer learning across the Global South by creating ways for researchers and farmers to build practical skills and knowledge in engaging and unique ways. 

The Kenyan delegation included four members: Esther Wairimu Magondu, a Scientist specializing in Aquatic Farming Practices at WorldFish Kenya; David Oersted Mirera, Principal Research Scientist and Assistant Director for Mariculture at the Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI); Harmold Jabiri Mramba, an internal pond fish farmer; and Abdullah Darusi Juma, a seaweed farmer and producer.

The delegates first visited the office of WorldFish Bangladesh in Dhaka to meet Dr. Benoy Kumar Barman, Interim Country Representative, who welcomed the Kenyan team and introduced the activities, experiences and strategies of the work in his country. He described the objective of AABS, which is to create sustainable aquaculture methods to improve the standard of living for coastal communities in Bangladesh, particularly for women and young people. 

On the second day the group visited a ‘gher’, which is a rice field that has been modified to allow for fish and prawn farming next to where the rice is growing.  This alteration of a rice field allows for the operation of three businesses: high yield rice types, carp and prawns, the latter of which is the major enterprise. 

The gher system supports sustainable aquaculture in Bangladesh by integrating fish farming with rice cultivation, optimizing land use. It enhances biodiversity, reduces water pollution and improves soil fertility.  

The delegation also visited the private business, Khulna Prawn Hatchery. The technical team leader of the hatchery briefed the team about their production techniques. They mostly use high-quality broods gathered from the Patharghata River in the Barguna district in the south to create prawn post larvae. The larvae are very sensitive, so it is important to maintain strong biosecurity during the entire process of producing quality post larvae.

The visiting team arrived at the brackish water research station of the Bangladesh Fisheries Research Institute (BFRI), Paikgacha, Khulna, for the second half of the day. Dr. Latiful Islam, Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) and Station Chief, and a group of BFRI scientists welcomed the Kenyan delegates. Dr Islam highlighted the activities, achievements and learnings from this station and shared the results of their study on integrated cultures of shrimp, fish, aquatic weeds and molluscs.  

BFRI scientists introduced the variety of research activities at the campus, demonstrating their seabass, mullet fish and brood development process, as well as the mariculture of mixed species using approaches such as integrated multi-trophic aquaculture (IMTA). 

For the third day of the knowledge exchange, the delegation traveled to a mud crab hatchery managed by the Nowabenki Gonomukhi Foundation (NGF), a local non-government organization located at Shyamnagar in Satkhira district.  

More than 380 crab farms operate in the Shyamnagar area. Many soft-shell crab farms used to be shrimp farms, but changed their purpose in order to achieve higher profits, highlighting opportunities for business development and diversification in coastal farming communities.

During the next stop at aquaMAX Seafood, a crab farming and processing center at Shyamnagar, Managing Director Shahidul Islam Jewel and Executive Director Ivy Lorraine shared how they developed the farm and business, and the challenges they have overcome. The visitors and the private business shared knowledge in an interactive and participatory manner. Thus, the opportunity to exchange knowledge at the expert level is expected to make AABS's South-South cooperation meaningful and sustainable. 

The visitors participated in a presentation session at the head office of NGF focusing on the opportunities and challenges of mud crab hatchery and soft-shell crab farming. This session was conducted by the Managing Director and Executive Director of the organization. 

On day four, the delegation moved to the Cox’s Bazar, visiting the Marine Fisheries Technology Station of BFRI. Dr. Shafiqur Rahman, Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) and Station Chief, welcomed the visiting team and led a detailed presentation about the institute’s current activities and earlier achievements, along with plans for the future. Rahman and other BFRI scientists showcased their current research activities on campus, including the use of concrete ponds, work in laboratories and a project to explore the tissue culture of seaweeds. 

The following day, the Kenyan group connected with Bangladeshi peers at a Fish Landing Centre to learn about the different species captured by artisanal fishers. Although it was not the peak period of the day for sales, visitors could see different species of fish, squid and crab being sold in the wholesale market. 

Afterwards, the delegates went to a floating mariculture research site within the connecting areas of Moheshkhali Channel and Bakkhali river, close to the Rashtarpara of Khurushkul village of Cox’s Bazar.

This research is conducted by Chattogram Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (CVASU) with the support of the WorldFish Enhanced Coastal Fisheries in Bangladesh (ECOFISH Phase II) project. Dr. Md. Asaduazzman, Associate Professor and Principal Investigator of the research on behalf of CVASU, explained the project, while his team members demonstrated the mariculture of green mussels, oyster and seaweeds. 

There was then opportunity to visit research-based outreach campus of CVASU located near the Doriyanagor sea beach in Cox's Bazar. Dr. Asaduazzman and his team gave an overview of current research, focusing particularly on work looking into the tissue culture of seaweed and an IMTA project using large-scale concrete tanks in the laboratory.  

To end the knowledge exchange, the visitors from Kenya reflected on what they had learnt and what they could replicate back home to embed and improve sustainable aquaculture practices in their coastal communities. 

Abdullah Darusi Juma, a seaweed farmer, said, "What I have learned and observed in the last few days in Bangladesh is an amazing experience. As a farmer I would say that the knowledge gained here has enriched me a lot and I hope to put this learning to my work.” 

Aquatic Farming Practices Scientist Esther Magondu of the visiting team said, “We had a great time learning and exchanging knowledge during the exchange visit to Bangladesh's coastal mariculture locations. We gained a comprehensive understanding of Bangladesh's mariculture industry through visits to farms, hatcheries, processing facilities, and research organizations, as well as from meeting WorldFish colleagues and learning about the country's aquaculture activities and their contribution to GDP and people's livelihoods. We gained valuable insights that we plan to apply to AABS WP2 as lessons learned.”