Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia

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A Civil Committee meeting addresses Aquaculture Development in Georgia.

The Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture, in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), developed the 2024-2028 Strategy and Action Plan for the Sustainable Development of the Aquaculture Sector in Georgia.

The mentioned documents were presented to the members of the civil committee, field specialists, representatives of associations, and farmers.

The Deputy Minister of Environmental Protection and Agriculture, Mr. Tengiz Nasaridze, participated in the meeting, which was organized by the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture, with the support of the European Union, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP).

The Deputy Minister discussed the actions taken in recent years to promote the aquaculture sector in the country, noting that owing to its importance, an aquaculture development unit was established within the Ministry's structure.

"Georgia has a great potential for developing aquaculture, thus, our objective is to make the most of the available opportunities. The Ministry has set specific plans for developing the aquaculture sector in the country and increasing export opportunities. I think the developed strategy is a valuable document, based on which the farmers employed in the field will be promoted, opportunities will expand and the right accents will be determined," said Mr. Tengiz Nasaridze.

The 2024-2028 strategy for the sustainable development of aquaculture in Georgia covers ten main tasks, including the inventory of natural fish resources and operating aquaculture farms; determining the pool for prospective fish species and aquatic ecosystems; adopting sustainable methods for aquaculture production and developing environmentally relevant new paths; training, retraining and raising the qualifications of specialists in the aquaculture field, developing necessary infrastructure, creating new production systems and modernizing existing ones; improving the quality of produced fish products and complying with safety requirements, elaborating successful marketing approaches for selling aquaculture production in Georgia.

It is worth mentioning that aquaculture development is a priority for the Ministry; the country's aquaculture law came into force in 2020, and in 2023, eight locations were designated in the coastal areas of Adjara, Samegrelo, and Guria to accommodate marine aquaculture farmers, however, due to the mentioned efforts, in 2024, the European Union officially recognized the fishing licenses issued by Georgian state agencies, allowing Georgian companies to export sea fish and fishery products to the EU market.