• Editorial - Use and exchange of aquatic genetic resources in aquaculture: information relevant to access and benefit sharing
• Use and exchange of aquatic resources relevant for food and aquaculture: common carp (Cyprinus carpio L.)
• Use and exchange of salmonid genetic resources relevant for food and aquaculture
• Use and exchange of genetic resources of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus)
• Use and exchange of aquatic genetic resources for food and aquaculture: Clarias catfish
• Patterns of use and exchange of genetic resources of the striped catfish Pangasianodon hypophthalmus (Sauvage 1878)
• Use and exchange of genetic resources of penaeid shrimps for food and aquaculture
• Use and exchange of genetic resources in molluscan aquaculture
• Use and exchange of genetic resources of emerging species for aquaculture and other purposes
• Chinese abstracts

The journal Reviews in Aquaculture has published a Special Issue on Use and Exchange of Genetic Resources of Cultured Aquatic Organisms (zip: 2.4 MB), which is now available for reference and download. This issue is the result of an expert consultation held in Chonburi, Thailand in June 2009, under the auspices of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (GGRFA) of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) facilitated by the Aquaculture Management and Conservation Service (FIMA) of the Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture, FAO and the Network of of Aquaculture Centres in Asia-Pacific (NACA). This special issue deals with the present state of knowledge in respect of common carp, salmonids, clarias catfish, tilapias, striped catfish, emerging finfish species, shrimp and molluscs, and with an editorial addressing the general issues on the status of aquatic genetic resources and use and exchange thereof. The consultation also produced a synthesis document that was tabled at the Twelfth Regular Session of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.

Aquatic genetic resources were included in the portfolio of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (CGRFA) only in 2007, at its 11th regular session held in June 2007. NACA is pleased that it was involved in the immediate follow-up activities that principally involved the coordination of the preparation of the document, The Use and Exchange of Aquatic Genetic Resources in Aquaculture: A Synthesis. This synthesis will facilitate the Commission’s consideration of access and benefit sharing of genetic resources for food and agriculture, which will be a major issue that will be deliberated at its Twelfth Regular Session in Rome, October 2009, and is also available on the web site of the CGRAF (Background Study Paper No 45).

The synthesis on aquatic genetic resources is based on reviews on seven species/ species groups of aquaculture importance which were presented and discussed at a consultation in Chonburi, Thailand in April 2009. These were:

• Common carp Cyprinus carpio (Jeney, Z. and Zhu, J.).
• Pacific salmon Oncorhynchus spp, and Atlantic salmon Salmo salar (Solar, I.).
• Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus (Eknath, A. and Hulata, G.).
• Tropical catfish Clarias spp (Na-Nakorn, U. and Brummett, R.) and striped catfish, Pangasianodon hypophthalmus (Nguyen, T.T.T.).
• Marine shrimp (Benzie, J.).
• Selected molluscs, (Guo, X.).
• Emerging aquaculture species with food, ornamental and ecotouristic value (Nguyen, T.T.T., Rimmer, M.J., Davy, F.B., De Silva, S.S.).

Until late in the last century, genetic resources had largely been considered the common heritage of mankind, available to all. This view began to change in the latter half of the 20th century as issues surrounding intellectual property rights as well as access and benefit sharing arrangements have gained prominence, beginning with the establishment of the Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants in 1961.

An international framework for regulation of genetic resources has gradually evolved since. Major milestones include the establishment of the FAO Commission on Genetic Resources (CGRFA) in 1983, initially as the Commission on Plant Genetic Resources; the Convention on Biological Diversity in 1992; the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property (TRIPS) in 1994 and the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture in 2004.

By Hung, H.P, An, N.T.T., Trieu, N.V., Yen, D.T., Na-Nakorn, U. and Nguyen, T.T.T.

Dong Thap Province in the Mekong River Delta (in Vietnamese it means Delta of Nine Dragons) has a tropical climate and an abundant supply of fresh water the whole year-round. It borders Cambodia to the North, Vinh Long Province to the South, Long An and Tien Giang Provinces to the East; and Can Tho and An Giang to the West.

Dong Thap is also known as one of the provinces where the tra catfish, Pangasianodon hypophthalmus, aquaculture industry is well established. In 2006, the province produced 300,000 tonnes of catfish, contributing 37.5 % to the total production of Vietnam catfish aquaculture production. Catfish aquaculture in the province also employs about 40,000 people, out of the 1.6 million people who are living there.