Report on the First Regional Training Course for Fisheries Extension Officers in Marine Capture Fisheries

Abstract

Small-scale fishermen comprise the majority of the total number of persons engaged in fisheries in South and Southeast Asia. At the Symposium on the Development and Management of Small-Scale Fisheries held at the 19th Session of the FAO Indo-Pacific Fishery Commission in Kyoto from 21 to 30 May 1980, it was learned that, in several Asian countries, between 90-97 percent of the total number are within the small-scale sector. In general most of them are extremely poor and lack the basic necessities of life. Thus, they need assistance from their government to acquire a better standard of living. On the other hand, their government usually lacks a sufficient amount of experienced fishery extension officers who are not only knowledgeable in various important subjects related to appropriate technology, but also can effectively communicate this knowledge to the small-scale fishermen. Therefore, ways and means to improve the transfer of technology to small-scale fishermen has been uppermost in the minds of fisheries personnel during the past few years, as was expressed during the aforementioned Symposium on the Development and Management of small-scale Fisheries in the Indo-Pacific Area.