Desirable attributes of
species used in small
scale aquaculture
- Protocol

Species commonly used
for aquaculture in
sub-Saharan Africa:
-O. andersonii
-O. aureus
-O. macrochir
-O. mossambicus
-O. niloticus
-O. shiranus
-Tilipia rendalli
-T. zillii
-Clarias gariepinus
-Cyprinus carpio
-Chrysicthys nigrodigitatus
-Heterotis niloticus
-Production of all-male
cichlid offspring

Alien species in African aquaculture
-Enviromental and economic
impacts
-FAO Codes of Practice

The FAO Codes of Practice for the introduction and transfer of aquatic organisms
EIFAC (FAO) have developed codes of practice to assist managers in coming to a decision relating to whether or not to allow the importation of alien species. The aims of these codes are:
To limit the impacts of the introduction on biodiversity in the target environment.

To attempt to ensure that the introduction meets socioeconomic development goals and especially does not adversely impact on existing or future socioeconomic conditions.
The recommended procedure involves four steps.
These four aspects are interrelated and can often overlap. For example, a proposal may be modified by evaluation and the review or decision need not necessarily be approved or disapproved, but might involve recommending further evaluation of specific aspects or adjusting certain elements of the proposal (e.g. quarantine strategies).
Infrastructures must exist which can facilitate the above process. These include the following:
An effective domestic legal framework by which introductions and transfers of organisms are controlled and managed.

Penalties for defaults under legislation should be commensurate with the degree of economic and environmental damage that inappropriate and unapproved introductions or transfers can potentially cause.

A permit system authorising the proposed importation is the usual method of administration. Permits can, and should dictate the conditions under which the activity will be allowed. The actual codes of practice have no legal status in most countries. They are not regulations, but a voluntary system which can be adopted to address a particular problem. The FAO does however encourage countries to incorporate such safeguards into their own regulations.
Two recent international agreements (Agenda 21 of the Rio conference on Environment and Development and the International convention on Biological Diversity) both require that countries effectively have a "code of practice" for aquatic introductions and transfers.
The review process
It is essential that an independent review of the proposal and its evaluation are made. It is best that the membership of the review panel should not include any person with a direct interest in the outcome of the proposal. A review panel might include, but not necessarily be limited to, all of the following:
Fisheries and aquaculture specialists with expertise also in aquatic ecology

Aquatic ecologists

Socioeconomists with both experience in the aquatic sector (fisheries and/or aquaculture) and more broad socioeconomic experience

fisheries/aquaculture geneticists

Representation from the environment/conservation sector

Representation from the human health sector

It will be rare that all parties in the review panel will agree totally with all aspects of a proposal and its evaluation.

Various decision support systems can be used to help the review panel come to an informed decision. EIFAC have developed a number of codes of practice for introductions into various habitats and for various purposes. The EIFAC review process involves the use of an opinionairre in conjunction with a decision-review model. The opinionairre is a means by which the panel can score their opinions based on the results of the evaluation process. The results of the opinionairre are then used in a review and decision model which guides the panel and helps to obtain a consensus.
References: Bartley 1993; Coates & Bartley 1993; Turner, 1988.
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