PREPARATION OF THIS DOCUMENT

The Seventh Session of the Sub-Committee on Aquaculture of the FAO Committee on Fisheries (COFI) acknowledged the growing importance of spatial planning to promote aquaculture growth, and requested the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) to develop a step-by-step guide for the implementation of spatial planning tools and continue capacity building in developing countries.

Furthermore, environmental, aquatic animal health and socioeconomic issues require an ecosystem approach to management of the sector moving beyond individual farms to the management of spatial units such as aquaculture zones or aquaculture management areas. To this end, FAO in partnership with the World Bank have prepared this publication on aquaculture zoning, site selection and aquaculture management areas under the ecosystem approach to aquaculture. It is aimed primarily at managers and policy-makers, but has relevance to a wide range of stakeholders.
An expert workshop on Site Selection and Carrying Capacities for Inland and Coastal Aquaculture convened on 6–8 December 2010 at the Institute of Aquaculture, University of Stirling, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and proposed the development of a guide for aquaculture site selection and carrying capacity estimation within an ecosystem approach to aquaculture.

This publication builds on the experiences gained in that expert workshop. This document was validated by contributors to this publication and other international experts at a workshop in Izmir, Turkey, on 5–8 July 2015. It was also tested in a few countries such as Angola, Kenya and the United Republic of Tanzania before it was finalized.
The purpose of the publication is to provide practical guidance on spatial planning to managers, policymakers, technical staff and farmers. The publication reviews spatial planning and management of aquaculture development within the framework of the ecosystem approach to aquaculture development, and also presents suggestions for a strategy for their implementation using an area management approach to ensure greater sustainability for future aquaculture development initiatives by governments. It is based on the FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries, which contains principles and provisions in support of sustainable aquaculture development. The publication is global in its reach and is aimed to be of relevance and use in developing countries.
The handbook and Annexes 1, 2, 3 and 4 were edited by FAO/World Bank. However, Annexes 5 (case studies) and 6 (workshop report) have been reproduced as submitted.