HRD Vital For Fisheries Growth In BIMP EAGA
By Azrol Azmi

Bandar Seri Begawan - More than 35 delegates from Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines who are responsible for human resources development in the fisheries sector yesterday attended the 2nd Regional Workshop on Human Resources Development (HRD) for Sustainable Development in Fisheries in the Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asian Growth Area (BIMP EAGA).

The workshop, which is hosted by the Fisheries Department at the Ministry of Industry and Primary Resources, started yesterday and will continue until November 10 at the Holiday Lodge Hotel in Jerudong.

It was also attended by representatives from Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Centre (SEAFDEC) as the secretariat of the project; Asean Foundation and Islamic Development Bank as the funding agencies; BIMP EAGA Facilitation Centre; and BIMP EAGA Natural Resources Cluster Development (NRD) as an observer.

The workshop is held in line with the project launched by SEAFDEC in the year 2005 under a project entitled Human Resources Development for Sustainable Development in Fisheries in BIMP EAGA.

It is supported by the Asean Foundation through the Japan-Asean Solidarity Fund to enhance human capacity, bridge the development gap and to promote the exploitation of udder-utilised resources in this region.

The project comprises three main areas of human resources development in fisheries, namely marine capture fisheries (sea-based), aquaculture and post-harvest technology (land-based).

The project aims to develop human resource capacity of the relevant government departments by mobilising the existing sub-regional works and exchanging experiences among the target countries in planning and conducting human resources development activities, targeting SMEs in particular.

It is expected that after a series of HRD activities, government staff would gradually develop their skills in interpreting appropriate fisheries information when they formulate activities to support SMEs in the fisheries sector and to promote future sustainable fisheries development to meet their national priorities.

The objectives of the workshop are to discuss the outcomes and achievements of each activity, identify future follow-up actions relating to human resources development and to discuss lessons learned and policy recommendations.

Brunei Darussalam benefits from the project through cooperation and network sharing within BIMP EAGA.

Present at the workshop was Hj Abdul Halidi bin Mohd Salleh, Acting Director of the Fisheries Department.

The workshop facilitators from SEAFDEC are Dr Siri Ekmaharaj, Dr Yasuhisa Kato, Mr Suriyan Vichitlekarn and Mr Somnuk Pornpatimakorn. -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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