Through UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), the UK Government has announced a £12 million funding scheme to develop sustainable and resilient aquaculture systems across Southeast Asia
This scheme will address challenges such as climate change, disease management, food security, and community resilience while focusing on supporting the local economies as well as women in science.
The importance of the aquaculture industry
The aquaculture industry is important in global food production, particularly in Southeast Asia, which is home to some of the World’s largest aquaculture producers.
Countries such as Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines are central to global fish and seafood production, making them ideal locations for this new research and development program.
The funding has been provided through the UK government’s International Science Partnership Fund. It aims to create international collaborations between UK-based researchers and local stakeholders, including governments, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and community groups.
The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) support the program, emphasising addressing sustainability challenges in low and middle-income countries.
Projects included in this scheme
An example of one of the projects included in this funding is the AquaSoS initiative, led by the University of Stirling.
This project hopes to create a digital tool that helps protect ecosystems while promoting sustainable aquaculture. Using satellite data, sensors, and laboratory results, AquaSoS will help address pollution, climate change, and disease in areas like Vietnam’s Mekong Delta. The project provides policymakers and industry leaders valuable insights to balance environmental conservation with food production.
Another project worth noting is the WAVES Consortium, led by the University of Southampton.
The WAVES project focuses on mollusk farming in Vietnam, Malaysia, and Indonesia, a vital industry for producing high-quality seafood with a low carbon footprint.
The project hopes to tackle climate change, diseases, and food safety by improving farming practices and developing tools to predict climate risks.
By strengthening mollusk farming communities’ resilience, WAVES aims to ensure a consistent seafood supply and support food security across the region.
The GLOBALSEAWEED-PROTECT project, led by the UK’s Natural History Museum, supports the seaweed industry in Southeast Asia, which is vital for both livelihoods and various industrial products.
By focusing on resilience, biosecurity, and habitat restoration, this project will help farmers improve the sustainability of their seaweed crops.
Through partnerships with local farmers, governments, and NGOs, GLOBALSEAWEED-PROTECT aims to create disease-resistant crops and reduce environmental impact, contributing to broader global sustainability goals.
Another key project is focused on developing low-cost tools to monitor water quality and detect diseases early, specifically targeting small-scale shrimp farmers in Vietnam and Thailand. By providing affordable, easy-to-use systems, the project will enable farmers to respond quickly to environmental and health challenges, reducing losses and improving productivity.
These research projects show a huge step forward in addressing the issues faced by the aquaculture industry in Southeast Asia.
By allowing collaboration between UK-based and Southeast Asian researchers, the program seeks to enhance food security. It aims to support local economies, promote gender equity in science, and contribute to environmental sustainability.
