Developing countries need to come together to protect their aquaculture business from the looming threats of climate change.

This is possible according to a statement sent by the Department of Agriculture last week where it said that the WorldFish Center and the Bureau of Agricultural Research have forged ties for "a capacity-building program specifically intended for the Philippines’ Regional Fisheries Research and Development Centers (RFRDC) managers."

The WorldFish Center is one of the 15-member centers supported by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research. The group’s mission is reducing poverty and hunger through research-for-development initiatives to improve the small-scale fisheries and aquaculture sector.

One of its approaches is the cultivation of South-South interaction, which it said encourages countries to work together on shared problems like threats from climate change. It also broadens opportunities for researchers working in developing countries.

These collaborating countries could help each other develop their indigenous capacity to generate, manage and use R&D to address their specific needs.

"Climate change poses new challenges to the sustainability of fisheries and aquaculture systems, with serious implications for the 520 million people who depend on them for their livelihoods and the nearly three billion people for whom fish is an important source of animal protein," WorldFish Center said.

The Philippines -- like its neighboring countries Thailand and Vietnam -- are at the center of this threat because majority of the citizens depend on aquaculture and fisheries for their livelihood.

"Through the South-South collaboration, countries are encouraged to work together on shared problems," WorldFish Center said.

South-South collaboration, it said, is important not only for the institutions involved but also as an effective means to encourage the researchers and research managers in the country.

"Exposing researchers and scientists to the current research developments in other countries is an effective way of encouraging them to be more creative and innovative in their thinking," it said.

Source: http://www.bworldonline.com/main/content.php?id=6082