20 DECEMBER 2016 • WORLD AQUACULTURE • WWW.WAS.ORG supply to meet population growth. Moving from a historical focus on subsistence aquaculture, commercial aquaculture is taking off in several African countries, supported by increasingly formalized urban economies, modernization of the retail sector and a move to consumption of commodity products. This is coupled with African governments’ investments in infrastructure and logistics, and supportive policy regimes that facilitate growth of the sector. Despite downward revisions in World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) growth forecasts for sub-Saharan Africa, reflecting the impact of challenging macroeconomic conditions, lower commodity prices and drought, the supporting fundamentals driving demand ensure that the growth potential of commercial aquaculture remains strong. Investors and business people are often reminded that “Africa is not a country.” The continent consists of 53 countries with a wide diversity of cultures (impacting, for example, food traditions and eating habits); vastly differing levels of economic maturity, technology and In Context – Africa Rising from a slow start, aquaculture production in Africa is poised for sustained growth over the next two decades. The intersection of market opportunities, economic factors and environmental conditions positions the continent as arguably the “last great frontier” for aquaculture development — set to be a focal point of discussions at the World Aquaculture Society meeting in Cape Town, South Africa, in June 2017. The untapped potential of the continent’s extensive inland waterways and coastlines, together with an increasing shortfall in fish supply, creates a significant opportunity for aquaculture to meet the rising demand for fresh fish from a growing and rapidly urbanizing consumer population. The World Bank forecasts the fish supply shortfall for Africa to rise to 1.8 million t by 2030, with capture fisheries under pressure and increasingly unable to meet demand. While per capita fish consumption is declining in general, this is largely due to lack of Aquaculture Review: South Africa Peter Britz and Samantha Venter Shore-based abalone farm in Hermanus, South Africa. The untapped potential of the continent’s extensive inland waterways and coastlines, together with an increasing shortfall in fish supply, creates a significant opportunity for aquaculture to meet the rising demand for fresh fish from a growing and rapidly urbanizing consumer population.
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