The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2020

Part 2 narrative sections in English, French or Spanish 
for more than 80 countries. Given the high demand, 
FAO will strive to continue improving the timeliness and 
accuracy of the information provided.
BOX 7
FAO FISHERY AND AQUACULTURE COUNTRY PROFILES
1
This information product garnered 20 000 page views in November 2019, and represents about 7 percent of the overall traffic concerning the FAO fisheries and aquaculture 
knowledge base. Together with the fisheries statistics pages, it accounts for almost 20 percent of overall traffic concerning this knowledge base.
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THE STATE OF WORLD FISHERIES AND AQUACULTURE 
2020
data available to and collected by FAO (FAO, 
2016). The Illuminating Hidden Harvests 
project (see the section Illuminating Hidden 
Harvests, p. 176) is working on an updated 
assessment of the performance of marine 
and inland small-scale fisheries, and how 
to objectively characterize them. This could 
improve how small-scale fisheries are 
monitored in global databases. 
Both SDG Indicators 14.2.1 and 14.5.1 require 
more emphasis on minimizing detrimental 
effects from fisheries on habitats and ecosystems. 
The pilot Protected Areas Information 
Management System shows how FAO’s fisheries 
information can be integrated with external 
repositories of information on biodiversity 
(the Ocean Biogeographic Information 
System), marine protected areas (MPAs; World 
Conservation Monitoring Centre) and their 
environmental and socio-economic features 
(Biodiversity and Protected Areas Management) 
to support conservation and spatial applications. 
iMarine provides an innovative platform for 
data-sharing agreements with these external 
actors (iMarine, 2019a), for example, in the 
context of marine biological diversity of areas 
beyond national jurisdiction.
As the SDGs rely on country assessments, they 
constitute a unique opportunity to increase data 
generation, quality, availability and usage in 
sectoral monitoring systems for policy guidance. 
The above examples illustrate FAO’s way 
forward to leverage information technologies 
and partnerships to respond to the challenges of 
proper monitoring and reporting on the SDGs. 
An aquatic genetic resources information 
system to support sustainable growth in 
aquaculture
Growth in demand for fish and fish products 
needs to be met primarily from expansion of 
aquaculture production. Several elements are 
necessary to achieve this growth sustainably, 
but one area that is sometimes overlooked 
is the need to effectively manage aquatic 
genetic resources (AqGR). Here, AqGR 
include DNA, genes, chromosomes, tissues, 
gametes, embryos and other early life-history 
stages, individuals, strains, and stocks 
and communities of organisms of actual or 
potential value for food and agriculture.
Typically, diversity of AqGR is considered only 
at the species level. More than 600 species 
are produced in aquaculture (while more than 
1 800 species are fished), and this number is 
growing as culture techniques develop for new 
species. Although there is some consolidation 
of production around a small number of 
“commodity” species such as carps, tilapias, 
salmonids and shrimps, the total number of 
farmed species will probably continue to grow. 
While there is relatively good understanding 
of the diversity of farmed species, there is 
a paucity of knowledge on AqGR below the 
species level. 
Genetic diversity is a cornerstone of aquaculture. 
It allows organisms to grow, to adapt to natural 
and human-induced impacts such as climate 
change, to resist diseases and parasites, and to 
continue to evolve and adapt to farming systems. 
FAO recognizes that AqGR cannot be managed 
effectively in a knowledge vacuum and is working 
to enhance understanding and to develop 
knowledge products on AqGR.
What is known about AqGR used in aquaculture?
FAO publishes annual statistical data on 
aquaculture production from all known 
producing countries and territories. To reflect 
the diversity of aquatic species, these data are 
registered under designated statistical units 
called “species items”, for which scientific names 
(and common names, where available) are 
drawn from the Aquatic Sciences and Fisheries 
Information System (ASFIS [
Box 8
]). 
A species item may refer to a taxonomically 
identified single species or to a species group. 
The level of aggregation of a species item 
varies greatly, from closely related species 
of the same genus to very loosely related 
species with common characteristics (e.g. 
marine invertebrates). Designed for production 
statistics, ASFIS has no authority over the 
taxonomic status of the species or species groups. 
It is also relatively static with periodic minor 
updates necessarily being based on reliable, 
consistent and detailed nomenclature changes or 
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PART 2 
SUSTAINABILITY IN ACTION
additions. For FAO global aquaculture production 
statistics, all recorded production is aggregated at 
or above the species level.
Other information sources on AqGR include 
Aquatic Sciences and Fisheries Abstracts (ASFA 
[
Box 8
]), which enables searches of a large 
database of published resources, including on the 
genetics of aquatic species. FishBase has detailed 
information on finfish species (Froese and Pauly, 
2000), and SeaLifeBase has similar information 
on other aquatic marine taxa (Palomares and 
Pauly, 2019); both include published information 
on genetics but generally not referencing 
The Aquatic Sciences and Fisheries Information System 
(ASFIS) is the standard reference list of species 
maintained by FAO to compile global capture fisheries 
and aquaculture production statistics. The ASFIS 
database provides the scientific name, higher 
taxonomic classification and corresponding codes for 
each species item stored. Codes assigned under the 
FAO International Standard Statistical Classification 
for Aquatic Animals and Plants (ISSCAAP) divide 
commercial species into 50 groups and 9 divisions 
according to their taxonomic, ecological and 
economic characteristics. FAO uses the taxonomic 
code for a more detailed classification of species items 
and for sorting them within each ISSCAAP group, 
while the 3-alpha identifier is a unique three-letter 
code widely used for data exchange with national 
correspondents and among fishery agencies. 
More than 12 750 species items are listed in 
ASFIS, of which just under 5 percent have been 
reported as having been farmed, according to FAO 
aquaculture statistics released in March 2019. ASFIS 
records are mainly at species level, with 150 at genus 
level or above. ASFIS also includes a few hybrids for 
which aquaculture production statistics could be 
provided, such as the hybrid catfish (
Clarias 
gariepinus
× 
C. microcephalus
) and the hybrid striped 
bass (
Morone chrysops
× 
M. saxatilis
). In the aquatic 
genetic resources (AqGR) information system, ASFIS 
will provide the species backbone to which the 
inventory of farmed types will be mapped. 
As a stakeholder of the ASFIS Reference Series, the 
Aquatic Science and Fisheries Abstracts (ASFA) can 
also be a valuable support tool for the AqGR 
information system. ASFA is a partnership, established 
in 1971, to ensure the dissemination of information on 
aquatic sciences, fisheries and aquaculture. More than 
100 institutions around the world have contributed 
bibliographic records to the ASFA database of more 
than 3.7 million records. 
With a focus on capturing hard-to-reach grey 
literature of particular value to researchers and 
policymakers, ASFA is ideally placed to contribute to 
growing knowledge and awareness of AqGR. Its 
subject-specific thesaurus helps identify information of 
interest on AqGR, and the geographic and taxonomic 
terms can be used to specify where related aquaculture 
genetic research is taking place worldwide and on 
which species. For example, when an ASFA partner 
creates a record on the genetic characterization of 
C. gariepinus
used for aquaculture in Nigeria, this can 
be linked to the appropriate record in the AqGR 
registry. 
Although much scientific literature is openly 
available online, ASFA’s use of controlled vocabulary 
terms to index its records means it can deliver a level 
of accuracy and specificity to data and information 
systems such as on AqGR. ASFA’s international