1. What are the main factors that enable rural aquaculture to generate livelihoods and reduce poverty?

Rural aquaculture is referred to as farming of aquatic plants and animals, using technologies adapted to locally available and limited resources of households. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) emphasizes in- creasing production from existing aquaculture farms and coastal areas, and integration of aquaculture with existing crop and livestock farms. By December 2003, ADB had financed 25 projects with major aquacul- ture development components. Starting early in the 1970s, the majority of aquaculture project approvals took place in the 1980s, coinciding with a surge in global interest in aquaculture. Aquaculture was often narrowly viewed as intensive farming of shrimp and prawn species, adopted mainly by relatively wealthy farmers to provide high-value products for exports. The expansion and growth in shrimp farming has been without safeguards, often leading to environmental degradation. This narrow view of aquaculture develop- ment hides the potential of fish farming, particularly in the context of rural development.