(vasep.com.vn) In 2014, provinces in the Mekong Delta target to raise aquaculture area to 800,000 hectares, up 5,000 hectares year-on-year. Accordingly, local fish production is expected to hit 2.4 million MT, up over 400,000 MT.
The locality will use the area of 690,000 hectares to farm high economic value species such as black tiger shrimp, giant freshwater prawn and pangasius and other brackishwater and freshwater species.
The region aims to improve irrigation system for aquaculture, tighten enviroment control, monitor closely fish seed, popularize techniques in fish farming to farmers.
The Mekong Delta will intensify fish safety and hygiene, traceability to meet requirements of the markets as well as strengthen trade promotion, market forecast and grant global certificates and codes for fish farms.
More capital would be poured for farmers to renovate farming ponds; buy equipments, feed and seed for farming. Processing factories are encouraged to sign contracts with farmers for fish purchasing. Pangasius production of the region is expected to reach 1.2 million MT in the total area of 5,500 – 6,000 hectares.
In 2013, the Delta reaped 2.2 million MT of fish production on the area of 795,000 hectares. The figures made up 92.5 percent in fish production and 89 percent farming area over 2012. Its fish output included 541,000 MT of shrimp on the area of 650,000 hectares and over 1 million MT of pangasius on the area of 5,000 hectares.