WWW.WAS.ORG • WORLD AQUACULTURE • DECEMBER 2015 45 how to put gender principles and approach into practice. The absence of a specific Gender in Aquaculture and Fisheries (GAF) curriculum in universities in Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam could be one of the reasons for the lack of capacity of technologists to be gender-sensitive and responsive in their careers. Social science curricula may include gender as a course but these should be better integrated within other science courses for holistic development of skills among young people who are the future leaders in their chosen fields. Fortunately graduate programs covering Gender in Development and Technology courses and short-course training programs fill in the gaps. There are also efforts to offer courses equally to men and women to improve access to education, with scholarships often requiring gender balance, more women or specifically to women. The dilemma at times is that there are not enough qualified women or the conditions of these scholarships are not gendersensitive. There are very few women in the highest or top positions of professional organizations. Although the ratio of women in organizations is sometimes high, they are mainly in the support and service departments. Conclusions The more gender is mainstreamed at higher levels of governance, the more that gender issues will feature in national fisheries and aquaculture policy. It is necessary to conduct gender audits and document best practices in successful gender integration in the workplace and in the field among aquaculture stakeholders. Most of the time, the lack of effective implementation of the policies is due to the lack of capacity for gender integration and mainstreaming. Information exchange among countries and practitioners, including curriculum and training development, will be helpful to strengthen capacities. Strong support is needed for organizations and countries to achieve gender equality and women empowerment in aquaculture. Recommendations Regional bodies are recommended to support the regional gender practitioners’ network formed from the MARKET project and coordinated by NACA, including a regional conference to arrive at a consensus or declaration to develop regional strategies for gender in aquaculture action plans. Countries are encouraged to address impacts on women’s livelihoods and wellbeing when working on issues such as climate change, disaster, food security and nutrition. Countries should develop, support and implement gender equality policies in aquaculture and design and promote the collection of gender-disaggregated data as a routine and part of census and statistics data collection. To establish baselines, the participation, contribution and benefits gained by men and women from aquaculture should be tracked. Extension and skills development programs should be gender-sensitive and/or responsive. Women and girls from fish farming households should be given priority for education. Development agencies are encouraged to develop genderin-aquaculture strategies in projects and to link the aquaculture sector with existing gender priority programs. Fund allocations for gender expertise to address and prevent inequality are necessary. Aquaculture institutions also need assistance from development agencies to build up capacity on gender integration in all aspects of aquaculture in their work. The recommendations for education and training institutions include developing gender-sensitive curricula in aquaculture and fisheries. They should assist women learners to meet educational and early career aspirations. Training courses should be gender equitable in terms of access and content, and address the lack of capacity of women in aquaculture technologies, techniques and business management. Research institutions should make accessible existing studies on gender including in local languages for global literature. Their research design and activities should adhere to a gender dimensions framework. As much as possible, institutions should also give priority and apply resources to research on gender in aquaculture, and gender-sensitive research and development. They should support the upgrading of skills and knowledge of research staff on gender integration and ensure that staff policies promote gender equality, including in recruitment and promotion. The private sector is encouraged to have gender-sensitive Corporate Social Responsibility activities and to recognize the importance of women as users of their products to meet their needs. Financial institutions should improve access to financing and credit to women. NGOs, civil society organizations and farmers’ groups are recommended to share and develop further the knowledge and experiences gained in implementing gender equality and women’s empowerment interventions. They should also partner with government, research, educational institutions and the private sector for shared work in gender promotion. Acknowledgments Funding for the study was provided by USAID Feed the Future Program through the MARKET Project. The assistance and guidance from Gladys Villacorta, Cherdsak Virapat, Meryl J. Williams and NACA Secretariat Staff are greatly appreciated. Notes Arlene Nietes Satapornvanit formerly Network of Aquaculture Centres in Asia-Pacific, NACA PO Box 1040, Kasetsart Post Office, Bangkok 10903 Thailand; arlenens@gmail.com Amonrat Sermwatanakul and Kanit Naksung, Department of Fisheries, Kaset Klang, Phaholyothin Road, Chatuchak, Bangkok 10900 Thailand Kao Sochivi, Fisheries Administration, PO. Box 582, #186, Norodom Blvd., Chamkamorn, Phnom Penh, Cambodia Nguyen Thi Phuong Dung, Vietnam Institute for Fisheries Economics and Planning, No. 10 Nguyen Cong Hoan, Ba Dinh, Hanoi, Vietnam Yuan Derun, Network of Aquaculture Centres in Asia-Pacific, NACA PO Box 1040, Kasetsart Post Office, Bangkok 10903 Thailand Nikita Gopal, CIFT, Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Matsyapuri P.O., Cochin – 682029, Kerala, India
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