SEAFDEC Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center
On 14 February 2023, the Secretary-General of SEAFDEC, Ms. Malinee Smithrithee, Policy and Program Coordinator, Dr. Worawit Wanchana, and Project Planning and Management Division Head of SEAFDEC Training Department, Mr. Isara Chanrachkij, paid a courtesy call to the Head of Marine and Fisheries Research and Human Resources Development Agency of Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (MMAF), Indonesia and SEAFDEC Alternate Council Director for Indonesia, Mr. I Nyoman Radiarta, Head of Bureau for Public Relations and Foreign Cooperation and SEAFDEC National Coordinator, Mr. Ari Prabowo, as well as other senior officials of the MMAF. The visit served as an opportunity to discuss the ongoing and future programs of SEAFDEC related to regional issues, collaborative projects, and capacity-building activities that support Indonesia and other SEAFDEC Member Countries. Additionally, the discussion also included the organization of the SEAFDEC Program Committee Meeting which will be hosted by the SEAFDEC Inland Fisheries Research Development and Management Department (IFRDMD) scheduled in the fourth quarter of 2023.
On 16 February 2023, the SEAFDEC delegation visited the IFRDMD in Palembang and observed the Special Area for Conservation and Fish Refugia (SPEECTRA) in Patra Tani Village —a pilot model for floodplain fisheries management established by the IFRDMD and Research Institute of Inland Fisheries and Extension (RIIFE). Finally, the technical cooperation between the SEAFDEC Training Department (TD) and IFRDMD was discussed, particularly the in-house capacity-building activities on hydroacoustic equipment, where experts from IFRDMD would be invited by TD to serve as resource persons.