Fishery Statistics Summary 2019

From 2015 to 2019, the worldwide trend of fishery production from both capture fisheries and aquaculture (Table 1) had been steadily increasing at an average rate of 4.3 million MT per year or about 2.1% annually. Countries from Asia are among the major fish producers, contributing about 51.2% to the total fishery production during the past 5 years. In the Southeast Asian region, fishery production increased from 44.0 million MT in 2014 to 46.8 million MT in 2019 with an annual average rate of increase of 0.69 million MT or 1.5%, while the region’s total contribution to the world’s total fishery production in 2018 was approximately 21.9 %. Such feat had been achieved through the intensified efforts of the governments of the Southeast Asian countries to promote responsible fishing practices and sustainable management of the fishery resources, and also because the countries adhered to the new paradigm of change in fisheries management which is geared towards sustainability.

Table 1. Fishery production by continent from 2015 to 2019 (million MT)*

	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019
World	196.6	198.9	206.4	211.9	213.7
Africa	10.9	11.5	12.3	12.4	12.5
America	21.3	20.0	21.4	24.5	22.4
Asia**	101.5	103.5	107.5	108.5	112.9
Southeast Asia***	44.0	45.3	45.5	46.5	46.8
Europe	17.3	16.9	18.1	18.4	17.3
Oceania	1.6	1.7	1.6	1.6	1.8

* Source (except for Southeast Asia): FAO FishStat Plus-Universal Software for Fishery Statistical Time Series
** Excludes Southeast Asia
*** Source: Fishery Statistical Bulletin of Southeast Asia (SEAFDEC, 2022)

As shown in Table 2, the fishery production of Southeast Asia from 2015 to 2019 exhibited a continuously increasing trend especially in terms of volume (quantity) although the increases in terms of value were quite unstable. The annual average increase in volume from 2015 to 2019 was 1.5 %, while the annual average rate of increase of the value was about 9.5 %. However, since some countries were not able to provide the value of their respective fishery production for 2019, such figures could be indicative only. Nevertheless, the figures still imply that in addition to the increasing volume, most of the fishery commodities harvested in the region were of high value. By country, Indonesia reported the highest fishery production in 2019 in terms of volume accounting for about 48.4 % of the total fishery production of Southeast Asia, followed by Viet Nam contributing about 17.7 % and Myanmar at 12.7 %. The Philippines ranked next accounting for 9.4 %, Thailand at 5.3 %, Malaysia at 4.0 %, and Cambodia at 2.1 %. The contributions of Lao PDR, Brunei Darussalam, and Singapore to the fishery production of Southeast Asia in 2019 were minimal in terms of volume.

In terms of value, Indonesia accounted for about 56.4 % of the total value of the region’s fishery production with Myanmar emerging second contributing about 17.6 %, and Thailand came in third contributing about 10.0 %. Meanwhile, the Philippines which ranked fourth in terms of volume and value contributed about 9.2 %, and Malaysia which ranked fifth in terms of production volume as well as value accounted for 6.6 %. The trend of the fishery production of the Southeast Asian countries in 2015-2019 is shown in Figure 1.

Table 2. Total fishery production of Southeast Asia by quantity and value (2015-2019)

Fishery Production	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019
Quantity (MT)	43,998,054	45,336,010	45,496,587	46,539,195	46,766,274
Value (US$ 1,000)	38,746,241**	41,155,302*	50,564,226*	51,811,317*	55,045,395*

* Data not available from Cambodia and Viet Nam
** Data not available from Cambodia, Lao PDR and Viet Nam

Fig. 1 Fishery production of the Southeast Asian countries in 2015-2019 (left in quantity; right in value)

The fishery production of Southeast Asia comes from three sub-sectors, namely: marine capture fisheries, inland capture fisheries, and aquaculture. By subsector, the total fishery production of the region in 2019 as shown in Table 3 indicated that the largest portion of the production volume was derived from aquaculture accounting for approximately 54 % followed by marine capture fisheries at about 39 % and
inland capture fisheries at 7 %. In terms of production value, marine capture fisheries accounted for 53 %, aquaculture at 39 %, and inland capture fisheries at 8 % (Figure 2). While the value per metric ton of marine capture fishery products was about US$ 2,031/MT, those from inland capture fisheries and aquaculture were about US$ 1,605/MT and US$ 1,063/MT, respectively. This implies that the global market had started to recognize the value of aquatic products harvested through inland capture fisheries, and had been patronizing such products lately.

Table 3. Fishery production (quantity and value) of Southeast Asia in 2019

Sub-sector	Quantity (MT)	Value* (US$ 1,000)	Value/Quantity** (US$/MT)
Marine capture fisheries	18,167,839	29,343,867	2,031
Inland capture fisheries	3,316,808	4,056,224	1,605
Aquaculture	25,281,627	21,645,304	1,063
Total	46,766,274	55,045,395

* Data not available from Cambodia, Lao PDR and Viet Nam
** Computation of price excludes corresponding quantity production from Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Viet Nam

Fig. 2 Percentage of the sub-sectors’ contribution to Southeast Asia’s fishery production in 2019 (left in quantity; right in value)

The region’s production from marine capture fisheries in 2015-2019 had been generally increasing as shown in Table 4. However, in terms of volume, the annual average increase from 2015 until 2018 was only minimal at about 3.0 %, but with a slight decrease in 2019 to 18.17 MT from 18.33 MT in 2018 due to the decreased production of Indonesia and the Philippines in 2019. While the production value during 2015-2019 indicated that the total value of the region’s marine capture fisheries production had increased corresponding to the increasing trend of the quantity of production with the annual average increase had been very high at about 11.2 %, which could have been due to the considerable increase in the value of the production from Indonesia.

Table 4. Marine capture fishery production of Southeast Asia by quantity and value (2015-2019)

Marine capture fishery production	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019
Quantity (MT)	16,762,393	17,027,312	17,330,277	18,330,325	18,167,839
Value (US$ 1,000)	19,481,510*	19,939,678*	25,292,021*	28,122,606*	29,343,867*

* Data not available from Cambodia and Viet Nam

In terms of quantity or volume, the total production from marine capture fisheries of the Southeast Asian countries during 2015-2019 indicated that Indonesia contributed the highest volume to the region’s total production. Specifically, in 2019, Indonesia’s production was 6.42 million MT accounting for approximately 35.3 % of the region’s total, followed by Viet Nam at 3.58 million MT (19.7 %), Myanmar at 3.25 million MT (17.9 %), and Philippines at 1.9 million MT (10.5 %). Malaysia and Thailand had also produced a considerable amount of aquatic commodities from marine capture fisheries at 1.45 million MT (8.0 %) and 1.41 million MT (7.8 %), respectively. A picture of the region’s production volume from marine capture fisheries in 2019 could be gleaned from Figure 3.

Fig. 3. Marine capture fishery production of Southeast Asia in 2019

Although some Southeast Asian countries were not able to provide the value of their production from marine capture fisheries, the trend of the total value of the region’s marine capture fishery production from 2015 to 2019 seemed to have increased corresponding to the increasing trend of the region’s production volume. By country, Indonesia which led the Southeast Asian countries, accounted for about 55.9 % of the region’s marine capture fishery production value in 2019, with Myanmar emerging second contributing about 18.3 %. Meanwhile, Malaysia which came in third in terms of value contributed about 9.4 %, the Philippines came in fourth at 8.9 %, and lastly, Thailand contributed about 7.3 %. Aggregating the 2019 production volume from marine capture fisheries by major commodity groups, marine fishes provided the highest volume (Table 5) accounting for about 87.3 % followed by mollusks at 5.2 % while the crustaceans, seaweeds, and invertebrates contributed 4.7 %, 0.4 %, and 0.2 %, respectively. It should be noted that 2.1 % was contributed by other commodity groups which could not be appropriately classified as some countries were not able to provide their respective production volume by species. In 2019, the production volume of invertebrates, others, and marine fishes had decreased from that of 2018 by about 64.6 %, 55.1 %, and 0.7 %, respectively, but the production volume of seaweed, mollusks, and crustaceans had increased by about 52.9 %, 49.1 %, and 12.3 %, respectively, compared with the corresponding volume in 2018.

Table 5. Production of the major commodity groups from marine capture fishery in Southeast Asia (in MT)

Commodity Group	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019
Marine fishes	14,310,200	14,726,719	14,880,726	15,974,939	15,870,138
Crustaceans	636,342	708,248	718,355	765,095	859,449
Mollusks	532,192	540,958	830,724	564,974	940,461
Seaweed	78,230	41,457	47,271	44,383	67,848
Invertebrates	2,609	105,886	92,901	113,482	40,140
Others	1,202,820	904,044	760,300	867,452	389,803
Total marine capture fishery production (MT)	16,762,393	17,027,312	17,330,277	18,330,325	18,167,839

Comparing the volume of the total fishery production in 2019 with that of 2018, an increase in production of the marine capture fishery is obvious, which could have been influenced by various factors that include: Viet Nam’s increased production of various major commodities such as tuna-like fishes nei (Scrombroidei) from fishing area 71 , marine crabs nei (Brachyura), natantian decapods nei (Natantia), and production of cephalopods nei (Cephalopoda); Thailand’s production of major marine capture fishery that also increased considerably, especially anchovies, etc. nei (Engraulidae), torpedo scad (Megalaspis cordyla), blackbanded trevally (Seriolina nigrofasciata), and blue swimming crab (Portunus pelagicus), from fishing area 57 and 71; and Myanmar’s increased production of marine fishes nei from fishing area 57.

Moreover, the region’s production of major species such as the Auxis thazard (frigate tuna) and Auxis rochei (bullet tuna) decreased in 2019 compared with that of 2018 which could have been influenced by the reduced production of Indonesia and Philippines; Rastrelliger brachysoma (short mackerel) and Indian mackerel (Rastrelliger kanagurta) production also decreased in 2019 compared with that of 2018 which could have been influenced by decreased production of Indonesia. Meanwhile, production of marine mollusks nei in 2019 had increased compared with that of 2018, which could have been brought about by Viet Nam’s increased production from fishing areas 71.

The economically-important marine species that provided a sizeable contribution to the total fishery production of Southeast Asia from marine capture fisheries (by quantity and value) in 2019 are shown in Table 6. The data indicate that miscellaneous marine fishes (unidentified) contributed the highest volume at about 45.25% and value at about 19.45%. Production from the tunas group contributed about 14.06% to the total production quantity and ranked the second-highest, although it was ranked the highest in terms of value accounting for about 5.49% of the total production value.

The data in Table 6 also suggest that the production value of Scomberomorus spp. (seerfishes nei) is valued the highest among the commodities harvested through marine capture fisheries at US$ 4,891/MT followed by Rastrelliger brachysoma (short mackerel) at US$ 3,623/MT, then Rastrelliger spp. (Indian mackerels nei) at US$ 2,366/MT, crustaceans group, at US$ 2,104/MT, Auxis thazard (frigate tuna) at US$ 2,055/MT, Carangidae (Carangids nei) at US$ 1,762/MT, mollusks group at US$ 1,697/MT, Decapterus spp. (scads nei) at US$ 1,425/MT, Selar crumenophthalmus (bigeye scad) at US$ 1,275/MT, Rastrelliger kanagurta (Indian mackerel) at US$ 1,086/MT, Stolephorus spp. (Stolephorus anchovies) at US$ 1,070/MT, Megalaspis cordyla (torpedo scad) at US$ 995/MT, and Scomberomorus guttatus (Indo-Pacific king mackerel) at US$ 824/MT. The average price of miscellaneous marine fishes (unidentified) which contributed the highest volume in 2019 was estimated at US$ 993/MT, implying that this group must have generated low-value fishes that possibly include trash fishes.

Table 6. Economically-important marine species caught in the region in 2019

Group/species	Quantity (MT)	Percentage of total quantity of marine capture fishery production (%)	Value (US$1,000)*	Percentage of total value of marine capture fishery production (%)	Prices (US$/MT)**
Tunas and Tuna-like Species Neritic tunas Frigate tuna Bullet tuna Kawakawa Longtail tuna Oceanic tunas Skipjack tuna Southern bluefin tuna Yellowfin tuna Bigeye tuna Tuna-like species Narrow-barred Spanish mackerel Indo-Pacific king mackerel Seerfihes nei Tune-like fishes nei	2,554,708 563,566 133,576 … 210,591 219,400 1,295,685 823,138 4,801 1,607 374,706 91,433 695,456 275,380 47,944 26,403 345,762	14.06	1,611,148 529,293 274,548 … 137,774 116,971 698,103 426,621 1,934 835 262,061 6,652 383,752 206,723 39,489 129,140 8,400	5.49	734 939 2,055 … 654 533 549 403 4,708 520 714 77 1,064 751 824 4,891 766
Scads Bigeye scad Yellowstripe scad Torpedo scad Indian scad Scads nei Jacks, crevalles nei Carangids nei	1,608,747 249,895 148,700 94,884 634,431 195,148 162,715 122,974	8.85	1,135,507 318,533 58,598 94,404 154,147 278,081 15,087 216,657	3.87	706 1,275 394 995 243 1,425 93 1,762
Mackerels Short mackerel Indian mackerel Indian mackerels nei Mackerels nei	409,641 53,680 187,161 74,797 94,003	2.25	666,091 194,497 203,275 45,902 222,417	2.27	1,626 3,623 1,086 614 2,366
Anchovies Stolephorus anchovies Other anchovies	277,128 133,910 143,218	1.52	252,993 143,341 109,652	0.86	913 1,070 766
Sardines Spotted sardinella Goldstripe sardinella Bali sardinella Rainbow sardines Sardinellas nei	705,231 26,834 141,722 337,914 24,894 173,867	3.88	281,267 10,362 19,213 135,997 10,312 105,383	0.96	399 386 136 402 414 606
Crustaceans	776,282	4.27	1,207,515	4.11	2,104
Mollusks	939,758	5.17	1,043,689	3.56	1,697
Marine fishes unidentified	8,221,212	45.25	5,708,407	19.5	993

* Data not available from Cambodia and Viet Nam
** Computation of price excludes corresponding quantity production from Cambodia and Viet Nam

In 2015-2019, Southeast Asia’s production from inland capture fisheries had generally increased and its growth during the same period had been remarkable. The region’s total production from inland capture fisheries in 2019 was 3,316,808 MT accounting for approximately 15.4 % of the region’s total production from capture fisheries or 7.1 % of the region’s total fishery production. It should be recognized however that the compilation and reporting of production data from inland capture fisheries had been particularly limited and need to be improved. Thus, the data so far reported could be insufficient, especially in terms of species composition. It should also be considered that in the real situation, the catch of rural community members comprising the main users of the inland resources, is consumed locally and is usually not reported in local or national statistics. Accordingly, the data on the total catch from inland capture fisheries in this publication could be considered as indicative only.

While the Southeast Asian countries reported their respective data on production from inland capture fisheries during 2015-2019, only five countries reported the corresponding production values. Thus, the actual regional production trend of the inland capture fisheries sub-sector could not be established. At any rate, as the consistent top producer, Myanmar maintains a stable inland fishery production from 2015 to 2019 that accounted for 33.0 % of the country’s total production from capture fisheries, 27.0 % of the country’s total fishery production, and 3.4 % of the region’s total fishery production (Table 7). The second highest producer, Indonesia reported a production volume of 649,978 MT in 2019 that represented 9.2 % of the country’s production from capture fisheries, 2.9 % of the country’s total fishery production, and 1.4 % of the region’s total fishery production.

Table 7. Contribution of Southeast Asian countries’ inland capture fisheries to the region’s total fishery production in 2019

Country	Inland capture production (MT)	Total capture production (MT)	% of inland capture production to total capture production	Total fishery production (MT)	% of inland capture fishery production to total fishery production
Brunei Darussalam	…	13,725	…	14,658	…
Cambodia	524,465	661,690	79.26	969,098	54.12
Indonesia	649,978	7,066,428	9.20	22,614,595	2.87
Lao PDR	70,900	70,900	100	183,900	38.55
Malaysia	5,569	1,461,015	0.38	1,872,797	0.30
Myanmar	1,600,050	4,849,750	32.99	5,931,815	26.97
Philippines	154,681	2,054,891	7.53	4,413,129	3.51
Singapore	…	1,418	…	7,249	…
Thailand	116,65	1,527,130	7.63	2,488,833	4.68
Viet Nam	194,700	3,777,700	5.15	8,270,200	2.35
Total	3,316,808	21,484,647	5.44	46,766,274	7.09

It should be noted however that such production volumes could not be confirmed as accurate considering that most of the countries still need to improve their systems of collecting and compiling their respective fishery statistics, especially with regards to their production from inland capture fisheries.

Only three countries, namely: Indonesia, Philippines, and Thailand, had provided their respective production data from inland capture fisheries by species, while the other countries were not able to report due to inadequacy of expertise in identifying the catch by species. Capacity building in this aspect is, therefore, necessary to enable the countries to compile their respective inland fishery production by major groups of species. Thus, production from inland capture fisheries of Cambodia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Viet Nam in 2019 could not be analyzed in terms of species because these countries were not able to provide the breakdown of their production volume by species.

The group of freshwater fishes nei (Osteichthyes) with no species classification provided the highest production from inland capture fisheries accounting for 72.71 % of the region’s total inland capture fisheries production in 2019 (Table 8). As for the major species, production of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) was the highest at 3.81 %, followed by striped snakehead (Channa striata) at 2.63 %, torpedo-shaped catfishes nei (Clarias spp.) at 1.44 %, freshwater mollusks nei (Mollusca) at 1.4 0%, and snakeskin gourami (Trichogaster pectoralis) at 1.33 %. As for the production value per volume, the group of freshwater fishes nei (Osteichthyes) was valued the highest among the commodities harvested through inland capture fisheries at US$ 3,602/MT, followed by the Asian redtail catfish (Hemibagrus nemurus) at US$ 2,652/MT, striped snakehead (Channa striata) at US$ 2,636/MT, climbing perch (Anabas testudineus) at US$ 2,477/MT, and common carp (Cyprinus carpio) at US$ 2,174/MT.

Table 8. Production of major inland fisheries species in Southeast Asia in 2019

Common name	Quantity (MT)	Percentage total quantity of major inland species to total inland capture production (%)	Value (US$ 1,000)*	Percentage total value of major inland species to total inland capture production (%)	Price (US$/MT)**
Misc. fishes	2,411,779	72.71	2,604,310	64.21	3,602
Nile tilapia	126,268	3.81	209,575	5.17	1,660
Striped snakehead	87,395	2.63	230,402	5.68	2,636
Torpedo-shaped catfishes nei	47,647	1.44	60,847	1.50	1,277
Freshwater mollusks nei	46,471	1.40	4,727	0.12	102
Snakeskin gourami	44,122	1.33	15,805	0.39	358
Tilapias nei	41,802	1.26	51,835	1.28	1,240
Climbing perch	35,452	1.07	87,830	2.17	2,477
Common carp	29,649	0.89	64,455	1.59	2,174
Asian redtail catfish	29,140	0.88	77,285	1.91	2,652
Pangasius djambal	28,397	0.86	40,835	1.01	1,438

* Data not available from Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Viet Nam
** Computation of price excludes corresponding quantity production from Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Viet Nam

In 2019, the region’s total production from aquaculture accounted for about 54.0 % of the region’s total fishery production in terms of volume and 39.0 % in terms of value. From 2015 to 2019, Southeast Asia’s total production from aquaculture steadily increased at about 1.1 % per year (Figure 4), the highest increase of about 4.2 % was recorded from 2015 to 2016, which could have been brought about by the sudden rise in the aquaculture production of Cambodia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Thailand, and Viet Nam. The aquaculture production during 2017-2018 had been slightly decreased and increased at about 1.6% in the year 2019. The aquaculture production of Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand, and Viet Nam had been slightly increasing from 2015 to 2019, while those of Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore had been slightly decreasing from 2017.

The production of spiny eucheuma (Eucheuma denticulatum) of Indonesia as the largest producer of aquaculture product in 2019, contributed 54.50 % to the production volume and 14.30 % to the production value of the country’s aquaculture production. This was followed by Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) accounting for 9.00 %, Gracilaria seaweeds nei (Gracilaria spp.) at 7.90 %, and torpedo-shaped catfishes (Clarias spp.) at 6.50 %. In the case of Viet Nam, as the second-highest producer from aquaculture, 35.60 % of its aquaculture production came from striped catfish (Pangasianodon hypophthalmus), followed by whiteleg shrimp (Penaeus vannamei) at 12.80 %, freshwater fishes nei (Osteichthyes) at 10.60 %, and cyprinids nei (Cyprinidae) at 9.80 % of the country’s aquaculture production.

For the Philippines as the third-highest producer from aquaculture, its main aquaculture product was the elkhorn sea moss (Kappaphycus alvarezii) contributing 60.30 % to the country’s production from aquaculture, followed by milkfish (Chanos chanos) at 17.40 %, Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) at 7.40 %, Tilapia nei (Oreochromis (=Tilapia) spp.) at 4.50 %, and spiny eucheuma (Eucheuma denticulatum) at 3.20 %. For Myanmar, its main production from aquaculture was roho labeo (Labeo rohita) which accounted for 33.40 % of the country’s production from aquaculture, followed by common carp (Cyprinus carpio) at 28.10 %, and silver barb (Barbonymus gonionotus) at 24.00 %. Thailand’s main aquaculture product was the whiteleg shrimp (Penaeus vannamei) accounting for 39.40 % of the country’s production from aquaculture, followed by Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) at 23.80 %, hybrid catfishes (C. gariepinus x C. macrocephalus) at 10.10 %, and barramundi (=giant seaperch) (Lates calcarifer) at 4.90 %. In terms of value per volume of production from aquaculture, Brunei Darussalam had the highest average value at about US$ 7,308/MT (Table 24), followed by Singapore at an average of US$ 6,037/MT, and Thailand about US$ 3,300/MT.

Fig. 4. Trend of the aquaculture production (MT) of the Southeast Asian countries from 2015 to 2019

In terms of the value of the region’s aquaculture production, the actual trend could not be established as some countries were not able to report their data regularly. For the available data in 2019, by value per volume, Brunei Darussalam attained the highest average value at US$ 7,308/MT followed by Singapore at US$ 6,037/MT, Thailand at US$ 3,300/MT, Malaysia at US$ 1,992/MT, Myanmar at US$ 1,702/MT, the
Philippines at US$ 984/MT, and Indonesia at US$ 868/MT. Meanwhile, the value per metric ton of aquaculture production of Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Viet Nam in 2019 could not be calculated as their respective total production values were not reported.

Aquaculture production comes from three culture environments, namely: mariculture, brackishwater culture, and freshwater culture. In 2019, Indonesia as the top producer of aquaculture products of the Southeast Asian region had the highest production from mariculture, followed by Viet Nam from freshwater culture, Philippines from mariculture, Myanmar from freshwater culture, and Thailand from brackishwater culture. In terms of volume, aquaculture in marine areas or mariculture provided 44.0% to the region’s total aquaculture production in 2019 while brackishwater aquaculture contributed 20.0%, and the remaining 36.0% came from freshwater aquaculture. However, in terms of value, mariculture contributed 15.0% while freshwater aquaculture production contributed 42.0%, while brackishwater aquaculture production contributed the highest at 43.0% (Figure 5).

Fig. 5 Percentage of aquaculture production by sub-sector in 2019 (left by quantity: right by value)

It should be recalled that in 2018, production in terms of volume from mariculture accounted for 47.0% of the total aquaculture production, while brackishwater culture production accounted for 16.0% and freshwater culture production at 37.0 %. In terms of value, mariculture contributed 15.0 % to the region’s total aquaculture production value, brackishwater aquaculture production at 44.0 %, and freshwater aquaculture production at 41.0 %. In 2019, the production volume from freshwater aquaculture in 2019 slightly decreased by 1.9 % compared with that of 2018, which could be due to the decreasing volume of the production of Myanma and Viet Nam. Meanwhile, the production value from brackishwater aquaculture slightly increased by 7.5 % from that of 2018 which could be due to the increased production of Eucheuma seaweeds nei (Eucheuma spp.) by Indonesia.

Mariculture

In 2019, the region’s total production in terms of volume from mariculture contributed about 44.0 % to the region’s total aquaculture production and 15.0 % in terms of value. Farmed aquatic plants, such as the spiny eucheuma (Eucheuma denticulatum) and the elkhorn sea moss (Kappaphycus alvarezii), contributed 91.9 % to the region’s total mariculture production volume. Indonesia’s production of the spiny eucheuma (Eucheuma denticulatum) accounted for about 76.6% of the region’s total production volume from mariculture, followed by the elkhorn sea moss (Kappaphycus alvarezii) the main mariculture product of the Philippines which accounted for 12.9%. Specifically for the marine mollusks group, this group contributed about 5.0 % to the region’s total production volume from mariculture, with Viet Nam providing the highest production of marine mollusks nei accounting for about 2.80 %, followed by Thailand whose production of the green mussels (Perna viridis) and blood cockles (Anadara granosa) contributed about 0.30 % each (Figure 6).

In terms of value, the Eucheuma seaweeds nei (Eucheuma spp.) contributed 58.10 % to the region’s total mariculture production followed by shrimps which contributed 10.90 %, milkfish (Chanos chanos) which contributed about 8.50 %, and blood cockle (Anadara granosa) that contributed 5.30 %. Moreover, shrimp commended the highest value per volume at US$ 6,985/MT, followed by blood cockle at US$ 3,000/MT, and milkfish at US$ 2,229/MT. Meanwhile, the lowest value was obtained for the elkhorn sea moss at US$ 72/MT (Table 9).

Fig. 6 Mariculture production in 2019 by major species (left by quantity; right by value)

Table 9. Major mariculture species produced in the region (as of 2019)

Common name	Quantity (MT)	Percentage production of major commodities from mariculture to total mariculture production (%)	Value (US$ 1,000)	Percentage total value of major commodities production from mariculture to total mariculture value (%)	Price (US$/MT)
Eucheuma seaweeds nei	8,476,045	76.6	1,936,894	58.1	229
Elkhorn sea moss	1,611,289	14.6	116,154	3.5	72
Marine mollusks nei	337,764	3.1	15,927	0.5	700
Milkfish	126,804	1.1	282,610	8.5	2,229
Green mussel	91,130	0.8	40,981	1.2	450
Japanese Sargasso seaweed	80,618	0.7	27,643	0.8	343
Spiny eucheuma	75,619	0.7	8,587	0.3	114
Oysters	66,416	0.6	60,464	1.8	910
Blood cockle	58,719	0.5	176,167	5.3	3,000
Shrimps	51,904	0.5	362,575	10.9	6,985

As for value per volume of mariculture production in 2019, Brunei Darussalam posted the highest at an average of US$ 8,547/MT from its production of the highly economical species of groupers nei (Epinephelus spp.), followed by Myanmar at US$ 7,082/MT for shrimps, and Singapore at US$ 4,734/MT for its production of the mud spiny lobster (Panulirus polyphagus). Meanwhile, the mariculture production value of Thailand was at US$ 1,892/MT, Philippines at US$ 326/MT, Malaysia at US$ 290/MT, and Indonesia at US$ 250/MT.

Brackishwater Culture

The total production from brackishwater aquaculture in 2019 represented about 20 % of the region’s total production from aquaculture (Figure 7). The major groups and species cultured in brackishwater include crustaceans such as banana prawn (Penaeus merguiensis), giant tiger shrimp (P. monodon), whiteleg shrimp (P. vannamei), and other shrimps, aquatic plants such as Gracilaria spp., as well as fishes such as milkfish (Chanos chanos) and marine fishes, and others. Production of whiteleg shrimps (Penaeus vannamei) mainly produced by Indonesia, Viet Nam, and Thailand had the highest volume representing 33.0 % of the region’s total production from brackishwater aquaculture. The second highest was contributed by Gracilaria seaweeds (Gracilaria spp.) at 24.1 % mainly produced by Indonesia, and the third came from milkfish (Chanos chanos) at 19.5% mainly produced by Indonesia and the Philippines. Meanwhile, the giant tiger prawn (Penaeus monodon) contributed 9.0 % mainly from Viet Nam and Indonesia; the group of fishes provided 6.8 %; and shrimps at 1.9 %. In terms of production value, the whiteleg shrimp (P. vannamei) contributed the highest value of about 54.80 % which was provided by Indonesia and Thailand, followed by milkfish (Chanos chanos) from Indonesia and Philippines contributing at 16.10 %, giant tiger shrimp (P. monodon) from Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Malaysia at 15.10 %, and marine fishes at 8.00 %. Although aquatic plants attained the second-highest production volume (24.00 %), its contribution in terms of value was only 1.00 %

Fig. 7 Brackishwater culture production in 2019 by species (left by quantity; right by value)

On the average value per volume of production from brackishwater aquaculture, considering only the countries that reported their respective production values, Singapore posted the highest at US$ 28,267/MT followed by Brunei Darussalam at US$ 6,618/MT, Malaysia at US$ 6,087/MT, Thailand at US$ 4,866/MT, Philippines at US$ 3,523/MT, Indonesia at US$ 1,732/MT, and Myanmar at US$ 1,300/MT. Cambodia and Viet Nam did not report their respective production value from brackishwater aquaculture. The highest value per volume of production was attained by the giant tiger shrimp (P. monodon) at US$ 7,057/MT followed by whiteleg shrimp (P. vannamei) at US$ 4,592/MT, other shrimps at US$ 2,962/MT, group of fishes at US$ 2,238/MT, milkfish (Chanos chanos) at US$ 1,495/MT, and Gracilaria spp. at US$ 77/MT (Table 10).

Table 10. Major brackishwater species cultured in the region (as of 2019)

Common name	Quantity (MT)	Percentage brackishwater culture production of major commodities to total brackishwater culture production (%)	Value (US$ 1,000)*	Percentage total value of major commodities production from brackishwater culture to total brackishwater culture value (%)	Price (US$/MT)**
Whiteleg shrimps	1,678,302	33.0	5,056,968	54.8	4,592
Gracilaria seaweeds	1,223,648	24.1	94,800	1.0	77
Milkfish	992,195	19.5	1,483,073	16.1	1,495
Giant tiger shrimp	458,325	9.0	1,392,428	15.1	7,057
Misc. fishes	343,606	6.8	736,466	8.0	2,238
Shrimps	96,645	1.9	152,959	1.7	2,962

* Data not available from Cambodia and Viet Nam
** Computation of price excludes corresponding quantity production from Cambodia and Viet Nam

Freshwater Culture

The region’s total production from the freshwater culture in 2019 accounted for about 36.0% of the region’s total production from aquaculture, a slight decrease of about 1.9% from that of the 2018 production volume. In 2019, Indonesia had the highest production from freshwater aquaculture at 3,925,503 MT or 43.00 % to the region’s total freshwater aquaculture production, followed by Viet Nam at 2,983,829 MT or 32.70 %, Myanmar at 959,744 MT or 10.50 %, Thailand at 426,949 MT or 4.70 %, Philippines at 320,977 MT or 3.50 %, Cambodia at 290,180 MT or 3.17 %, Malaysia at 115,285 MT or 1.3 %, and Lao PDR at 113,000 MT or 1.3 %.

Having accounted for 42.0% of the region’s total aquaculture production value in 2019, the freshwater culture sub-sector had emerged as a very important fisheries sub-sector, notwithstanding the increase of its production value by almost 12.7% in 2019 compared with that of 2018. This information, however, should not be underestimated considering that the corresponding production values from Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Viet Nam had not yet been reported.

In terms of production volume from freshwater aquaculture by species of the Southeast Asian countries (Figure 8), pangas catfishes nei (Pangasius spp.) accounted for 21.90 % of the region’s total production from freshwater aquaculture, which was contributed mainly by Viet Nam. This was followed by Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) which accounted for 19.70 % and contributed mainly by Indonesia, followed by torpedo-shaped catfishes (Clarias spp.) at 11.60 % contributed mainly by Indonesia, common carp (Cyprinus carpio) at 11.40 % contributed mainly by Indonesia, Myanmar, and Viet Nam, tilapias nei (Oreochromis(=Tilapia) spp.) for 4.70 % contributed mainly by Viet Nam, cyprinids nei for 4.50 % accounted mainly by Viet Nam, roho labeo (Labeo rohita) at 4.10 % contributed mainly by Myanmar, silver barb (Barbonymus gonionotus) at 3.30 % accounted mainly by Myanmar, giant gourami (Osphronemus goramy) accounted for 2.10 % contributed mainly by Indonesia, and Africa-bighead catfish, hybrid (Clarias gariepinus x C. macrocephalus) at 1.10 % contributed mainly by Thailand.

On production value, the highest contributor to the region’s total production value from freshwater aquaculture in 2019 was Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) which accounted for 32.50 % of the region’s total production from freshwater aquaculture, followed by common carp (Cyprinus carpio) at 16.80 %, torpedo-shaped catfishes (Clarias spp.) at 13.80 %, roho labeo (Labeo rohita) at 6.90 %, pangas catfishes nei (Pangasius spp.) at 6.00 %, giant gourami (Osphronemus goramy) at 4.90 %, giant river prawn (Macrobrachium rosenbergii) at 3.70 %, and tilapias nei (Oreochromis(=Tilapia) spp.) at 3.10 %. For the value per volume of major freshwater aquaculture species, the highest was earned by giant river prawn (Macrobrachium rosenbergii) at US$ 7,006/MT followed by giant gourami (Osphronemus goramy) at US$ 2,312/MT, roho labeo (Labeo rohita) at US$ 1,690/MT, common carp (Cyprinus carpio) at US$ 1,678/MT, tilapias nei (Oreochromis(=Tilapia) spp.) at US$ 1,675/MT, Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) at US$ 1,641/ MT, Africa-bighead catfish, hybrid (Clarias gariepinus x C. macrocephalus) at US$ 1,484/MT, milkfish (Chanos chanos) at US$ 1,433/MT, pangas catfishes nei (Pangasius spp.) at US$ 1,380/MT, miscellaneous freshwater fishes at US$ 1,309/MT, torpedo-shaped catfishes (Clarias spp.) at US$ 1,191/MT, silver barb (Barbonymus gonionotus) at US$ 1,057/MT, and cyprinids nei at US$ 481/MT (Table 11).

Furthermore, for the value of production from freshwater culture by country, Singapore presented the highest average value at US$ 7,538/MT mainly coming from its production of the Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). This was followed by Brunei Darussalam at US$ 6,000/MT mainly for its production of the Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), Thailand at US$ 1,958/MT main for its production of Nile tilapia Malaysia at US$ 1,762/MT also for its production of tilapias nei (Oreochromis(=Tilapia) spp.), Indonesia at US$ 1,572/ MT, Philippines at US$ 1,550/MT, and Myanmar at US$ 1,435/MT.

Fig. 8. Production of major freshwater culture species in 2019 (by quantity (left) and value (right))

Table 11. Major freshwater species cultured in the region (as of 2019)

Common name	Quantity (MT)	Percentage freshwater culture production of major commodities to total freshwater culture production (%)	Value (US$ 1,000)*	Percentage total value of major commodities production from freshwater culture to total freshwater culture value (%)	Price (US$/MT)**
Pangas catfishes nei	1,997,171	21.9	548,074	6.0	1,380
Nile tilapia	1,801,127	19.7	2,956,238	32.5	1,641
Torpedo-shaped catfishes	1,056,921	11.6	1,258,394	13.8	1,191
Common carp	1,045,676	11.4	1,529,652	16.8	1,678
Tilapias nei	429,334	4.7	278,391	3.1	1,675
Cyprinid nei	412,819	4.5	6,160	0.1	481
Roho labeo	371,997	4.1	628,625	6.9	1,690
Silver barb	304,056	3.3	321,284	3.5	1,057
Giant gourami	193,197	2.1	446,744	4.9	2,312
Catfishes, hybrid	97,151	1.1	144,193	1.6	1,484
Misc. fishes	969,794	10.6	119,378	1.3	1,309
Milkfish	118,227	1.3	169,377	1.9	1,433
Giant river prawn	67,659	0.7	332,987	3.7	7,006

* Data not available from Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Viet Nam
** Computation of price excludes corresponding quantity production from Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Viet Nam

As of 2019, information on the fishing gear used in the region reflected in this Bulletin was based on the production from marine capture fisheries by type of fishing gear as reported by four countries, namely: Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand. The production from marine capture fisheries of the Southeast Asian region by types of gear is shown in Figure 9.

As the highest producing fishing gear, trawls accounted for about 46.0% of the total production from all types of gears, followed by the purse seines at about 26.5 %, gill nets at 13.5 %, falling net at 4.5 %, others at 3.0 %, hook and lines at 2.0 %, lift net at 1.3 %, traps at 1.2 %, push/scoop nets at 1.1 %, and seine nets at 1.0 %. However, the trend on gear used in marine capture fisheries could not be appropriately analyzed as several countries such as Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, and Viet Nam were not able to provide the necessary information.

From such information, the highest production by type of gears in Brunei Darussalam was from purse seine which accounted for about 78.1% of the total production of all types of gears, with yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) and scads nei (Decapterus spp.) as the main catch. This was followed by trawls at 12.6% catching cuttlefishes nei (Sepia spp.), gillnet at 3.6% catching frigate and bullet tunas (Auxis thazard, A. rochei), hook and lines at 2.9% catching yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) as the main catch.

For Malaysia, trawls gave the highest production by type of gears at about 46.3 % with trash fishes about 32.9%, lizard fishes nei (Saurida spp.) about 7.3 %, common squids nei (Loligo spp.) about 5.9%, paste shrimp (Acetes spp.) about 4.9%, and threadfin breams nei (Nemipterus spp.) about 4.6%. Purse Seine came in second high ranking at 24.4% catching scads nei (Decapterus spp.) about 17.1 %, longtail tuna (Thunnus tonggol) about 11.0 %, Indian mackerels nei (Rastrelliger spp.) about 9.8%, trash fishes about 8.5, Sardinellas nei (Sardinella spp.) about 7.1%, and torpedo scad (Megalaspis cordyla) about 6.6%.

For Thailand, trawls gave the highest production by type of gears at about 45.2 % and producing mainly trash fishes that represented about 45.9 %, marine fishes nei at about 10.0 %, common squids nei (Loligo spp.) about 6.0 %, and threadfin breams nei (Nemipterus spp.) about 5.0 %. Purse seines came in second contributing 28.2 % to the production from all types of gears catching Sardinellas nei (Sardinella spp.) representing about 13.4 %, Stolephorus anchovies (Stolephorus spp.) about 12.2 %, scads nei (Decapterus spp.) about 12.1 %, Indian mackerel (Rastrelliger kanagurta) about 11.0%, and jack, crevalles nei (Caranx spp.) of about 7.4 %.

In the case of Singapore, trawls gave the highest production by type of gears at about 100.0 % with penaeid shrimps nei (Penaeus spp.) accounting for about 15.3 %, marine fishes nei about 10.6%, snappers nei (Lutjanus spp.) about 8.1 %, and stingrays nei (Dasyatis spp.) of about 5.9 %.

Fig. 9. Marine capture fishery production by type of gear used in 2019

This report covers only the boats that have been registered in each country of Southeast Asia, except for Cambodia and Lao PDR which did not report their respective number of registered fishing boats in 2019. Based on the data available as of 2019, Indonesia had the highest number of boats at 625,708 boats, followed by Malaysia with 50,945 boats of which 6,303 were non-powered while 44,642 were powered boats. The third highest number was reported by Viet Nam with 35,382 boats, followed by Myanmar with 22,410 boats, Thailand with 10,530 boats, Philippines with 7,646 boats, Brunei Darussalam with 1,286
boats, and Singapore with 34 boats.

In 2019, Indonesia had the highest number of fishers at 5,575,736 of which 48.4 % were involved in aquaculture, 41.2 % in marine capture fisheries, 9.2 % in inland capture fisheries, and 1.2 % in unspecified fishery-related activities. Malaysia had the second-highest number of fishers at 149,269 with 84.8 % in marine capture fisheries, 2.1 % in inland capture fisheries, and 13.0 % in the aquaculture sector (Figure 10). Although minimal, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam also reported their respective numbers of fishers but Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand, and Viet Nam were not able to provide the information on their respective numbers of fishers.

Fig 10. Percentage of fishers by working status in 2019

Efforts to improve the data availability and statistics in support of all efforts to compile the data and information should therefore be intensified by encouraging the countries to enhance the reporting of small-scale fisheries operations through the conduct of census and surveys using questionnaires. This would enable the countries to compile the necessary data and information on fisheries not only on the number of fishers and fish farmers but also the number of fishing vessels and gear used in fishing operations.

In 2019, only four countries reported their respective production from aquaculture of ornamental fishes: Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Singapore. Myanmar reported its highest production that comprised mainly Danio choprae, the Asian barbs nei (Puntius spp.), Danio erythromicron, galaxy rasbora (Danio margaritatus), Danio kyathit, Garra flavatra, Botia kubotai, Schistura balteata, and Danio hysginon. Malaysia reported its production of ornamental fishes which comprise mainly the group of cyprinids, poecilids, anabantids, characins, callichthyids, and cichilds, Brunei Darussalam also reported its production of ornamental fishes which comprise mainly the group of poecilids, goldfish (Carassius auratus), Pterophyllum altum, cyprinids, and catfishes. Although Singapore also reported its production from aquaculture of ornamental fishes but the data provided was not by species level.

In terms of value, Myanmar reported the highest value which was obtained from Channa pulchra at US$ 0.56/pc followed by Burmese snakehead (Channa harcourtbutleri) at US$ 0.5/pc, Channa burmanica at US$ 0.5/pc, Garra flavatra at US$ 0.32/pc, Channa panaw at US$ 0.3/pc, Toxotes blythii at US$ 0.3/pc, Botia kubotai at US$ 0.25/pc, and Danio margaritatus at US$ 0.24/pc. Malaysia reported value that the country obtained was for the osteoglossids at US$ 32.53/pc, followed by chichlids at US$ 3.06/pc, callichthyids at US$ 1.83/pc, anabantids at US$ 0.43/pc, cyprinids at US$ 0.24/pc, and characins at US$ 0.23/pc. Brunei Darussalam reported value that the country obtained was for goldfish (Carassius auratus) at US$ 21.6/pc, chichlids at US$ 7.2/pc, Pterophyllum altum at US$ 3.6/pc, and cyprinids at US$ 2.16/pc. In order to have a better picture of the ornamental fish culture industry in Southeast Asia, efforts would be made to improve
the compilation of data from this sub-sector considering that this is a budding industry in the region.

The need to collect information on the volume of seeds produced from the aquaculture industry was recommended in many fora as this factor plays a significant role in enhancing the economic analysis of the
region’s aquaculture industry. Thus, a compilation of the said information was initiated by SEAFDEC in 2008 although at that time only four countries responded and provided the relevant information, i.e. Cambodia, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Singapore. Brunei Darussalam started to provide the necessary information in 2009, and every year thereafter until 2017 except in 2010. Cambodia started providing the necessary data in 2008 and 2009 but did not provide the data for 2010 to 2014. Cambodia again provided the data for 2015 and 2016, but not for 2017. Indonesia started to provide the necessary data in 2010 and continued until 2014, but no data were provided for 2015 until 2017. Malaysia started providing the data in 2008, and every year thereafter until 2019 except in 2018. Myanmar started to provide the necessary data in 2008, and every year thereafter until 2014, and although it did not provide data for 2015 and 2016, the necessary data were provided for this current issue of the Bulletin. Singapore started to provide the necessary data in 2008 and every year thereafter until this issue of the Bulletin, except in 2014. For the subsequent issues of this Bulletin, efforts would be exerted to gather the said information from all the Southeast Asian countries, e.g. Lao PDR, Philippines, Thailand, and Viet Nam, would be encouraged to provide the necessary data. Once all Southeast Asian countries can provide the necessary data, the true picture of this significant niche of the aquaculture industry could be established.

Although the commodities being harvested by the Southeast Asian countries through capture fisheries varied, the trend of the producer prices was established only for certain species which are commonly caught. Results of the analysis however indicated that the producer prices of several commodities harvested by the countries differ in each country, considering that fish prices are influenced by such factors as demand and supply, as well as the cost of production including feeds and transportation, and alternative commodities. For this current issue of the Bulletin, five Southeast Asian countries provided the necessary data related to the producer prices of commodities from their respective capture fisheries. These are Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, and Thailand. Efforts would be intensified to also obtain the relevant data from the other Southeast Asian countries in order to complete the Southeast Asian commodity price scenario in the future issues of the Bulletin, especially with respect to producer prices.

Meanwhile, the producer price situation in 2019 for certain economically important species of Southeast Asia shows that for inland fish species, the producer price of common carp, Cyprinus carpio in Myanmar was recorded at US$ 2.41/kg while it was US$ 1.45/kg in Thailand. For the Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus the producer price in Malaysia was US$ 2.19/kg compared to Myanmar’s US$ 1.32/kg. For torpedo-shaped catfishes nei (Clarias spp.) in Myanmar was US$ 3.29/kg compared to Malaysia’s US$ 1.39/kg. The producer price of marble goby (Oxyeleotris marmorata) in Malaysia was quite high at US$ 14.91. For other freshwater prawns (Palaemonidae), the producer price in Thailand was quite high at US$ 28.99/kg.

For marine fish species, the producer price of Barramundi (giant sea perch), Lates calcarifer in Singapore was US$ 7.52/kg compared to Malaysia’s US$ 4.34/kg. Saurida spp. in Singapore was priced at US$ 3.21/ kg compared to Malaysia’s US$ 0.64/kg. Groupers nei (Epinephelus spp.) in Thailand costs US$ 12.56/kg compared to US$ 4.54/kg in Malaysia. Meanwhile, for threadfin breams nei (Nemipterus spp.), the producer price in Brunei Darussalam was US$ 10.37/kg compared to US$ 1.84/kg in Myanmar. Threadfins and tasselfishes nei (Polynemidae) in Singapore were US$ 15.55/kg compared to US$ 4.19/kg in Thailand. Likewise, for silver pomfret (Pampus argenteus), the producer price in Thailand was quite high at US$ 19.33/kg.

The producer price of the yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) in Malaysia was highest at US$ 3.29/kg while the lowest was in Brunei Darussalam at US$ 1.41/kg. Scads nei (Decapterus spp.) in Singapore was priced at US$ 4.04/kg compared to Brunei Darussalam’s US$ 0.98/kg. For the yellowtail scad (Atule mate) the producer price in Brunei Darussalam was US$ 3.97/kg while the lowest price was US$ 1.68/kg in Malaysia.

For the blue swimming crab (Portunus pelagicus), the highest producer price was reported by Thailand at US$ 11.27/kg while the lowest was US$ 1.99/kg in Brunei Darussalam. For the giant tiger prawn (Penaeus monodon), the producer price in Brunei Darussalam was quite high at US$ 11.57/kg, while tropical spiny lobsters nei (Panulirus spp.) in Singapore was also quite high at US$ 19.39/kg. For common squids nei (Loligo spp.) in Singapore was US$ 5.23/kg compared to Brunei Darussalam’s US$ 1.55/kg. Cuttlefish and squids nei (Sepiidae) in Thailand was US$ 8.37/kg compared to US$ 4.88/kg in Singapore. As could be gleaned from the abovementioned information, the trends of the producer prices of the same commodities from among the countries in the region had generally wide variations.