This development became public, when Abia state, the fourth in the zone to have its Catfish Farmers Association (CAFAN) formally inaugurated by the National President, Mr. Tayo Akingbolagun in Umuahia, saying that the south east zone has great potential to make success of fish farming.
CAFAN has been inaugurated in almost all the southeast states and Delta, whose representatives including those of Akwa Ibom attended the Abia state inauguration.
Akingbolagun said that Catfish farming will create over 500,000 jobs with substantial number in the south east, when this annual national target of one million metric tons of Catfish becomes realised by 2018.
He said that actualising this target was hinged on the federal government’s Agricultural Transformation Agenda that set into motion an articulated Aquaculture Value Chain Development programme and its involvement in a five-year aquaculture development plan in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), which will be private sector driven.
Akingbolagun said that Nigeria’s potential for aquaculture is about four million metric tons annually with consumption estimate of 2.66 million tons adding that about 1.44 million tons of fish amounting to N100 billion annually are imported against the total nation’s production figure of 780,000 metric tons.
According to him, Nigeria has a coastline of about 853 kilometers with suitable enormous water resources favoring aquaculture and available aquaculture production area of 1.7 million hectares.
He therefore urged south easterners to engage in aquaculture saying “ the challenges in the fisheries sub sector should be seen as untapped opportunities waiting to be explored.”
The state resident Federal Director of Agriculture, Ebere Oziri, who said that about $500 million was expended in importing fish annually into the country, will be channeled to other sectors when the national target is achieved.
He said the inauguration of fish farming in the zone will help the fish farmers to form a common front through which they will attract government assistance. “It is when they come together that the cost of fish feeds will be reduced hence government has been willing to subsidise fish feeds in order to ultimately.
Announcing Abia state government support, the State Commissioner for Agriculture, Mr. Ike Onyenweaku said that under the Aquaculture Action Plan, the state government will provide baseline data of both farmers and potentials of the state in Aquaculture, train farmers along all the Value Chain in Aquaculture, provide them fish seeds and other needed inputs, help them to have access to the Nigerian Incentive-Based Risk-Sharing System of Agricultural Lending fund , provide land and Infrastructure for the establishment of fish markers/processing centres in all the 17 LGAs of the state.
State CAFAN Chairman, Prince George Akomas, who said that the members had the potentials to succeed, described the state chapter inauguration as one that will actualise government intentions towards, produce protein at affordable price to the people , pledging that they will work towards reducing the importation of fish into the country before very long.
Chairman, State Farmers Association, Mr. Dunlop Okoro who collaborated that there is a lot of market and return on investment on fish farming, urged CAFAN to collaborate with his association for their desired success.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) The year 2025 marked a pivotal milestone for Vietnam’s seafood industry in its restructuring process toward sustainability, transparency, and higher value creation, amid continued uncertainties in the global economic and trade environment. Prolonged inflation in major economies, the rising trend of trade protectionism, and increasingly stringent requirements related to environmental standards, traceability, and social responsibility have posed significant challenges to seafood production and exports. Nevertheless, overcoming these pressures, Vietnam’s seafood sector has gradually demonstrated its adaptability, maintained growth momentum, and laid an important foundation for the next stage of development.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Amid the increasingly evident impacts of drought and saltwater intrusion, the shrimp-rice production model in Ca Mau province continues to prove itself as a viable direction, contributing to higher farmer incomes, improved soil conditions and the promotion of ecological and sustainable agricultural development.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) The management of fishing vessels, monitoring of fishing activities, and handling of violations in the fisheries sector in Lam Dong province have continued to be implemented in a synchronized and stringent manner, contributing to raising awareness of legal compliance among fishermen and aiming to end illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Can Tho’s fishery industry sustained steady growth in 2025 with total aquatic and marine output reaching nearly 783,000 tons, fulfilling 100% of the annual target. Aquaculture, capture fisheries and fishing fleet management were further strengthened, aiming for sustainable development in the coming years.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) In 2025, Vietnam’s pangasius export turnover reached nearly USD 2.2 billion, up 8% year-on-year. This result indicates that pangasius exports maintained their growth momentum despite significant volatility in the global market environment. In December 2025, pangasius export value reached USD 200 million, up 10% compared to December 2024. This solid performance in the final month of the year reflects increased import demand for consumption and inventory replenishment in key markets.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) In 2025, Vietnam’s tuna exports to Spain experienced significant fluctuations. According to Vietnam Customs, during the first 11 months of 2025, export turnover for the first 11 months of the year edged up by 0.3% year-on-year, reaching nearly $15 million.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son has signed Decision No. 16/QD-TTg, dated January 5, 2026, approving the implementation plan for the Vietnam-Israel Free Trade Agreement (VIFTA). Under the plan, in the coming period, ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government-affiliated entities and People’s Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities must institutionalize and execute tasks focused on the dissemination of information regarding VIFTA and the Israeli market; legislative and institutional development, as well as enhancing competitiveness and human resource growth...
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Beyond achieving double-digit growth, Vietnam’s fish cake and surimi exports are showing a notable year-end "inflection point": the EU his accelerating with nearly twofold growth, China & Hong Kong are rising sharply, while the largest market, South Korea, signaled a slowdown in November. According to Vietnam Customs data, export turnover of fish cake and surimi reached $327 million in the first 11 months of 2025, up 22% year-on-year; November 2025 alone accounted for $35 million, marking a 5% increase. This serves as a critical foundation for exporters to reassess market structures and competitive intensity while finalizing order strategies for 2026.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Ca Mau, widely regarded as the nation’s “shrimp capital”, continued its strong performance in 2025 as shrimp output reached nearly 600,000 tons, maintaining its position as Vietnam’s leading shrimp-producing locality.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) On December 29, 2025, at the 2025 Pangasius Industry Review Conference held in Can Tho City, the Vietnam Pangasius Association announced that fingerling prices have surged to record levels due to acute supply shortages.
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