The forum will bring together more than 200 stakeholders to review progress in aquaculture development, share research and development experiences, and identify partnership opportunities to accelerate fish farming in Timor-Leste.
The event aims to foster collaboration, learning, and the continued scaling of sustainable practices within Timor-Leste's growing aquaculture sector.
The Minister for Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries, and Forestry, Marcos da Cruz, is the chief guest. Participants include government officials, development partners, researchers, fish farmers, and private sector operators.
The forum will feature a series of engaging sessions and panel discussions, addressing key topics:
- sustainable intensification and scaling aquaculture
- private sector involvement in aquaculture
- partnering for success in aquaculture development
- harnessing aquatic foods to improve nutrition
- fostering collaboration to expand fish farming
- advances in fish farming: opportunities for Timor-Leste.
The forum is hosted by the Partnership for Aquaculture Development in Timor-Leste Phase 2 project (2020-24) funded by the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, who have continuously funded aquaculture development since 2014, with complementary funding from United States Agency for International Development. The PADTL2 project is implemented by WorldFish in partnership with the Timor-Leste Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Forestry.