Workshop on Capture-based Aquaculture of Milkfish, 7-14 February 2012, Viti Levu Fiji Islands

Purpose of Notice
1. We announce the intention of Vitawa Village community, Fiji Department of Fisheries, Japan JICA, Fisheries and Aquaculture International (FAI) Co. Ltd, and Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) to jointly hold a training workshop on capture-based aquaculture of milkfish from 7 to 14 February 2012 at Vitawa Village in Ra Province, Viti Levu, Fiji Islands.
2. This notice serves as an invitation to SPC island member country governments and territory administrations with an interest in milkfish farming to nominate an official government or community-fisheries representative to the meeting, with the proviso that:
o Due to the limitation on available places at the workshop and to budgetary constraints, the funding for government-nominated representatives can only be provided to selected countries: Palau, Kiribati, PNG, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Cook Islands, Tuvalu, Nauru
o Other countries interested in sending a government or community representative are welcome and should seek their own means of funding.
o The number of places is limited by available accommodation at the training venue, so we request that official nominations be received no later than Friday 6 January 2012. Workshop objective
3. To provide participatory-learning opportunities in practical techniques for low-cost aquaculture of milkfish Chanos chanos (yawa in Fijian) by people who are currently, or will soon be, engaged in low-cost milkfish farming projects in the Pacific.

Background
4. Milkfish are identified by SPC, JICA and governments of Pacific island countries and territories as a fish species with potential for low-cost aquaculture for food security, to help meet projected increasing future demand for food fish by growing populations and demand for fishing bait.
5. Attributes that make milkfish suitable for low-cost aquaculture include the possibility to capture fingerlings from the wild for pond stocking, and to rear them on mainly natural feeds growing in the pond.
6. Milkfish aquaculture is well-established in SE Asia, but so far is scarcely practiced in the Pacific islands region. This is mainly because necessary techniques to capture and culture milkfish have not yet been transferred to the Pacific, except in one or two places. It is for this reason that the community of Vitawa Village in Ra Province, Fiji Islands, in collaboration with Fiji Department of Fisheries, JICA and FAI Co. Ltd., has established a milkfish aquaculture project.
7. The Vitawa project is now ready to provide hands-on learning opportunities to people from other places who are interested in establishing their own milkfish farming projects.

Workshop components
8. The provisional agenda is outlined in the attached Appendix. The workshop will cover the following aspects:
* Hands-on training opportunities will be provided to acquire practical skills in the capture, identification, safe transportation, and pond-stocking of milkfish fingerlings.
* Various fingerling-collection methods and equipment will be demonstrated.
* Participants will each build their own fingerling-capture “bulldozer net”, and will be able to take it home with them after the Workshop.
* Training will be provided on management of pond water quality to maximize natural-feed production and fish growth.
* Techniques for post-harvest handling (e.g. de-boning, icing, smoking) and marketing of fish will be included.

Language
9. The workshop will be conducted mainly in English, with some Fijian translation. Venue and dates
10. The workshop venue will be Vitawa Village and its surrounding waters, in Ra Province of Viti Levu Island.
11. It is envisaged that the workshop will cover eight days on either side of the full moon (which is on 8 February), and run from Monday 6 February to Tuesday 14 February 2012 (N.B. Sunday 12 February will be a rest day).

Travel, accommodation and transportation arrangements
12. Government of Fiji will sponsor the participation of national Fiji participants.
13. SPC will sponsor the participation of the government-nominated participant from the identified non-Fiji PICTs.
14. The sponsorship to all participants will include:
- a) Ground transport to Vitawa Village from your point of origin or arrival within Fiji
b) An allowance for “incidentals” of FJD 20 daily for the duration of time spent in Vitawa Village to attend the Workshop,
c) Billeted accommodation in Vitawa Village, with payment to your host household made by the meeting organizers on your behalf to cover (i) accommodation, and (ii) breakfast and evening meal
d) Morning tea and Lunch will be provided each day during the workshop dates (6 - 14 February)
e) Net materials for each participant to construct their own bulldozer net
f) The sponsorship for participants travelling to Fiji from other countries or territories will also include:
g) Return economy class excursion air fare to Nadi, Fiji, by the most direct route.
h) A full SPC per diem allowance for any obligatory overnight stopovers to and from Vitawa Village, Fiji, on the basis of your travel itinerary.

Meeting Contacts
o Official nominations to: Robert Jimmy, SPC Aquaculture Advisor, (email: robertj@spc.int, copy to genevievem@spc.int and timp@spc.int, or fax +687 26 38
18) no later than Friday 6 January 2012.
o Administrative issues, visa documentation, etc: Genevieve Mirc (email: genevievem@spc.int; tel +687 26 20 00, fax +687 2638 18).
o Information on the workshop content: Hideyuki Tanaka, FAI Co. Ltd (email: h.tanaka@sinjuken.co.jp).