Mobile phone app for Vietnam Shrimp Forum released

The forum is an initiative of the International Collaborating Centre for Aquaculture and Fisheries Sustainability (ICAFIS) within the framework of implementation of the Sustainable and Equitable Shrimp Production and Value Chain Development in Vietnam (SusV) project and the Gender Transformative and Responsible Agribusiness Investments in South East Asia (Graisea) project funded by the European Union, the Swedish Embassy in Vietnam and OXFAM.

Since 2016, the forum has become an annual event jointly organised by the Directorate of Fisheries, ICAFIS, OXFAM and WWF Vietnam to share, discuss and offer solutions in sustainable development of the Vietnamese shrimp industry with the focus on science and technology, policies, farming models, markets, organic agriculture and pressing issues of this industry.

In addition to the offline forum, online forums are set up on Facebook and Zalo, offering information about daily shrimp prices, markets, farming techniques and new policies. However, it is difficult to look up old data on these platforms and the number of member is also limited.

Therefore, the mobile phone application of the Vietnam Shrimp Forum was born, with these above-mentioned disadvantages addressed.

Shrimp is one among four key exports of Vietnam’s fisheries sector, accounting for 45 percent of total export turnover of aquatic products. Vietnamese shrimp is available in over 160 countries and territories around the world. The shrimp industry provides jobs and direct income for around 1.35 million labourers.