New Freshwater Aquaculture Systems in the Red River Delta of Vietnam: Evolution of a Key Role in Food Systems and Rural Development

• DOI: http://doi.org/10.18278/wfp.3.2.4.1.3
• Date: 01 March 2017
• Author: Nguyen Van Huong,Tran Huu Cuong,Philippe Lebailly,Tran Thi Nang Thu
• Published date: 01 March 2017

33

New Freshwater Aquaculture Systems

in the Red River Delta of Vietnam:

Evolution of a Key Role in Food

Systems and Rural Development

Nguyen Van Huong1,2, Tran Huu Cuong2,

Tran i Nang u3, and Philippe Lebailly2

A

Freshwater aquaculture production systems are closely related to

Integrated Agriculture Aquaculture systems. e systems are tradi-

tionally integrated with crop production, horticulture, and livestock

husbandry. Improved aquaculture systems are currently able to not

only improve the nutrients of local farmers’ diets and economic

conditions, but are also able to create employment opportunities

and lead to better resource-utilization and rural development. is

paper aims to present the changes in food systems aected by the

rapidly developing freshwater aquaculture in northern Vietnam. It

will shed light on how the aquaculture system plays various roles in

supporting agrarian livelihoods, their relationships to well-being,

and food security using a clear example of small-scale aquaculture

in a province of the Red River Delta. e challenges and opportu-

nities presented to small-scale producers and culture systems are

assessed, and the likely future of small-scale freshwater production

systems is discussed and forecast.

Combining historical, adaptive, and systematic approaches, the

study revealed the features and characteristics of inland aquaculture

systems at the household level over a decade of the evolutionary

process (1997–2015). By investigating 151 aquaculture households

in two representative districts of the region, the three existing sys-

tems are identied: VAC system (23%) (whereby V=vuon-gardens

(horticulture), A=Ao-ponds (aquaculture) and C=Chuong-animal

1 Faculty of Accounting and Business Management, Vietnam National University of Agriculture,

Hanoi, Vietnam

2 G embloux Agro BioTech, University of Liège, Belgium

3 Faculty of Fisheries, Vietnam National University of Agriculture, Hanoi, Vietnam

World Food Policy • Vol. 3, No. 2 / Vol. 4, No. 1 • Fall 2016 / Spring 2017

doi: 10.18278/wfp.3.2.4.1.3

World Food Policy

34

sheds/pens (livestock husbandry)); aquaculture/livestock (AF) sys-

tem (43%); and the commercially intensive sh culture (FS) system

(34%). Beyond the positive benets to the food system and rural

development, potential considerably exists for further aquaculture

integration within VAC systems in the region, which will contrib-

ute to poverty reduction and improvement of the livelihoods of

small-scale rural farmers.

Keywords: Freshwater aquaculture, production, systems, food, ru-

ral development

R

Los sistemas de acuacultura de agua dulce están muy relaciona-

dos con los sistemas integrados de acuacultura de agricultura. Los

sistemas están tradicionalmente integrados con la producción de

plantaciones, horticultura y la cría de ganado. Los sistemas de agri-

cultura mejorada pueden actualmente no solo mejorar los nutrien-

tes de las dietas de granjeros locales y las condiciones económicas,

sino que también pueden crear oportunidades de empleo y llevar

a una mejor utilización de recursos y desarrollo rural. Este docu-

mento busca presentar los cambios de sistemas alimenticios cau-

sados por la acuacultura de agua dulce que se está desarrollando

rápidamente en el norte de Vietnam. Resaltará cómo el Sistema de

acuacultura juega varios papeles para apoyar la subsistencia de los

agricultores, sus relaciones al bienestar y la seguridad alimenticia

al utilizar un claro ejemplo de acuacultura a pequeña escala en una

provincia del delta del Río Rojo. Los desafíos y oportunidades que

se le presentan a los productores a pequeña escala y a los sistemas

culturales son evaluados, y el futuro probable de los sistemas de

producción de agua dulce a pequeña escala se discute y predice.

Al combinar los acercamientos históricos, adaptativos y acerca-

mientos sistemáticos, el estudio reveló las funciones y caracterís-

ticas de los sistemas de acuacultura en zonas interiores, a nivel de

hogar y a lo largo de una década del proceso evolutivo (1997-2015).

Al investigar 151 hogares acuacultores en dos distritos representa-

tivos de la región, los tres sistemas existentes se identican: Sistema

VAC (23%) (donde V=jardines Vuon (horticultura)), A=estanques