The Department of Aquaculture and Fisheries Management, University of Ibadan, Nigeria, is the first of its kind in Sub Saharan Africa. It is the African Union Centre of Excellence in Aquaculture and Inland Fisheries, host to the DAAD postgraduate Scholarship in Inland, and Coastal Aquaculture in Africa and Centre of Excellence for Agriculture by FARA (Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa).
The Department has celebrated its first World Fisheries Day, a day usually celebrated annually globally on November 21.
According to the Head of Department, Professor Flora Olaifa, the theme of this year’s celebration was “Highlighting the Critical Importance of Healthy Ocean Ecosystem and to Ensure Sustainable Stock of Fisheries in the World ”
She explained that the ocean serves as a carbon sink and modulates the climate globally, and a healthy ocean ecosystem will ensure better fish stocks and food security.
Pollution with chemicals, plastic, and others poses a major challenge to the objective of meeting food security. To this end, during this year’s celebrations, the Department had a clean-up exercise on Saturday, 18 November 2023, an exhibition and an All- fish Day on 20 November 2023
while a guest lecture and symposium was held on 21 November 2023.
She said that these activities provided the opportunity for interaction between staff and students.
The Chairman at the symposium was Otunba Bamidele Dada OON, Ffs, former Honourable Minister of State for Agriculture and Water Resources, former UN Assistant Director- General and FAO Regional representative for Africa, and a UI alumnus.
In his address, Otunba Dada called on all stakeholders and the Federal Government through the Ministry of Blue Economy to engage in the dialogue necessary to define a new model for the governance of our ocean and the sustainable use of the ocean and coastal resources for economic growth.
He stated that protecting our ocean is a global necessity for global food security, given that more than 3 billion people depend on fish as a significant source of protein.
He stressed that the connection between a healthy ocean and life itself for every single person on earth can not be overemphasised.
The Keynote Speaker was Professor A.M.Balogun, while lead papers were presented by others on sustainability issues, marine stewardship, private sector, policy, and research, as well as interaction between the academia and the industry.
