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Clifford Spencer Encouraging support through global and government connections
It was very interesting listening to the various presentations made by Hull’s considerable research staff during the visit, and even areas such as the potential for integrating marine aquaculture into the increasingly developed marine wind farms, of which Hull’s North Sea hosts and is developing the largest and most efficient in the world. The host of ground-breaking technologies (from communication to monitoring to farming) that are now already available to assist smallholder aquaculture enterprises through their use in developing countries, is huge. These technologies took on a whole new meaning as the current situation of inland fisheries and aquaculture in continental Africa was explained by the visitors and discussed with the NAC’s directors with the support of Hull University based experts. The fact that for instance virtually all subsistence aquaculture in Africa is unrecorded (L-R) Estherine Lisinge Fotabong - Director of Policy and Programme was emphasised and with that the enormous Implementation and Coordination, NEPAD, the development agency of the reliance of local populations on the output of this African Union. Clifford Spencer – Trustee and Chairman of Aquaculture without indigenous small-scale aquaculture. Frontiers. Lord John Prescott – UK House of Lords. Hamady Diop – Head of Natural Resource Governance, NEPAD, the development agency of the African Union. The fish, often consumed whole, provide a currently irreplaceable healthy diet and source of high quality protein to the huge populations close to its production. The potential to do real harm, and the real harm already occurring when for instance major hydro-electrical power schemes are used for renewable energy schemes without proper consideration for inland fish life was described in detail. Conversely, the power to do real good using properly researched, designed and considered schemes was enormous. The NAC is receiving support from UK regional government and also encouragement from the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food in the UK national government. So great was the interest in our African visitors, that Lord John Prescott, previously Deputy Prime Minister of in York in the UK. the UK joined our visiting party and gave details of work he The capacity to trigger research of direct relevance to the was currently performing with Hull University in developing national aquaculture needs of developing countries, will be a countries based around establishing new low carbon economies. key asset for AwF in the capacity and services of the NAC. This work was designed to establish such economies without In this respect the NAC’s official academic partner Hull saddling these countries with dealing with the cost associated University has global skills as held in their own Hull with repairing the damage caused by industrialised nations in International Fisheries Institute and separate Institute of their historical and current carbon emissions. Coastal and Estuarine Studies. Only this week the university Different fish and crustacean species from around the globe hosted a visiting delegation to the NAC from the African were viewed in the university’s research tank facilities, some Union’s own development agency NEPAD, to discuss of which will now transfer to the NAC site at Grimsby for aquaculture and the surrounding so called blue economy. t has been a very busy month for Aquaculture without Frontiers in the UK. Much activity has been centred around the UK’s new National Aquaculture Centre (NAC), that is co-owned by the UK AwF and for which activity is increasing as the centre’s establishment continues at the Humber Seafood Institute on Grimsby’s Europarc. The other co-owner of the NAC is the GBTF a UN Foundation mandated, not for profit organisation, interested in technology transfer to developing nations. Currently discussions and efforts are taking place around the NAC’s important future IT capacity which is will be run by the GBTF’s David James. David is the holder of a double first in Mathematics from Cambridge University and his previous posting was as IT manager at global giant Nestle’s head office
Currently Mr Spencer leads the Global Biotechnology Transfer Foundation (GBTF), which is dedicated to promoting the potential for biotechnology to support sustainable, long-term, socio-economic development. He is also Chairman of Trustees for Aquaculture without Frontiers UK. 12 | June 2018 - International Aquafeed