Norway and Malaysia plant seeds for aquaculture partnership

27-Aug-2012 - Last updated on 28-Aug-2012 at 16:15 GMT

Malaysia and Norway are to cooperate on sustainable aquaculture in the south east Asian country.

Aquaculture leader Norway will help Malaysia develop a regulatory framework for aquaculture farming, as well as provide experts and training for Department of Fisheries (DOF) staff in the field.

The two will share the cost, with Norway providing RM3.25m ($1.04m) in funding while Malaysia will contribute RM3.27m ($1.05m) between 2012 to 2015.

Datuk Seri Noh Omar, the Malaysian agriculture and agro-based industry minister said the agreement was a step forward to enhance the development of the local aquaculture industry.

The agreement, he said, would also help reduce the problem of fish supply shortage in Malaysia, adding that the process of aquaculture would be more assuring in terms of income than the open sea fishing culture in the country.

“We want to encourage more people to rear fish which can help ensure sufficient fish supply in the country,” he said.

According to Omar, the partnership would begin with seven experts from Norway training Malaysian DOF staff, while 20 DOF officers would be sent to Norway for short-term and long-term courses.

Omar also revealed that the DOF would also set up a new division for aquaculture, given that it was poised to become a more important sector within the Malaysian food processing industry.

DOF data reveals that Malaysia’s aquaculture production is at 287,000 tonnes, and under a key government initiative, the production is projected to increase to 790,000 tonnes by 2020—where aquaculture exports would be worth RM3.2bn ($1.03bn).