We’re proud to share that over 120 professionals working in Egypt’s burgeoning aquaculture sector have successfully completed the FAI Academy training on tilapia welfare.
Run by FAI and Ethical Seafood Research, the project launched in February 2024. This initiative aims to provide Egyptian fish farmers with the tools and knowledge needed to assess and improve the welfare of farmed tilapia and enhance fish performance.
The project has already surveyed farmers on obstacles hindering improvements in improving fish welfare, delivered a series of welfare-focused fish farm visits, provided online learning webinars, and completed a full programme of ‘train the trainers’ workshops. A new cohort of fish welfare trainers is now ready to support the Egyptian tilapia sector.
“In collaboration with AQUAVET EGYPT and Kafr El-Sheikh University , we’ve successfully facilitated the rigorous training of over 120 trainees in the use of tilapia welfare assessment protocol and associated monitoring tools,” explained Wasseem Emam, ESR Founder and Director. “These individuals will now go on to spread their knowledge and experience among tilapia farmers across Egypt. The selected trainers will play a vital role in addressing this previously overlooked aspect of fish farming within the country’s globally important tilapia industry.
“Improving tilapia welfare not only improves fish wellbeing, performance and farm profitability but also brings Egypt in line with other leading fish-producing countries and hopefully opens up new export opportunities.”
The most recent ‘train the trainers’ workshops have taken place in both Port Said and Kafr El-Sheikh, focusing on developing both the theoretical and practical aspects of fish welfare that are necessary for a better understanding and monitoring of farmed tilapia welfare. In addition to insightful lectures, trainees gained hands-on experience in the use of FAI’s Tilapia Welfare App, a user-friendly platform for assessing and managing the welfare of fish in a farm setting.
“Trainees also visited tilapia farms to practise carrying out welfare assessments in a real-world setting” continued Wasseem. “The aim was to provide the trainers with the knowledge, tools and experience they need via a combination of face-to-face learning and online support.”
The Tilapia Welfare App has now been downloaded over 200 times in Egypt, highlighting the growing interest in welfare on Egyptian tilapia farms and the growing success of the Tilapia Welfare Egypt project.
“Enhancing tilapia welfare through dedicated apps and educational workshops is a vital step towards supporting a sustainable aquaculture sector in Egypt,” stated Aquavet Egypt Aquaculture Specialist, Shaimaa Bakr, who helped deliver the series of ‘train the trainer’ events. “These tools empower farmers with the knowledge and resources needed to improve fish health, boost productivity, and promote environmentally friendly practices.”
The Tilapia Welfare Egypt project is run by ESR in partnership with FAI, a global leader in aquaculture welfare, with ambitions to advance sustainable aquaculture practices across the world.
“It’s an important project to be involved with,” explained FAI’s COO MURILO QUINTILIANO , who visited Egypt along with his FAI colleague Dr Sara Barrento and the ESR team in February 2024 to help launch the project and learn about the challenges faced by Egyptian farmers. “Egypt is the top tilapia producer in Africa and one of the top three in the world, so it’s exciting to know there’s a new cohort of trainers working specifically to help promote and better support the implementation of welfare practices across the country.
“Together with ESR, we are positively impacting the aquaculture sector in Egypt and promoting improvements that benefit both tilapia farmers and the fish under their care.”
