His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales recently paid a visit to the Penang Headquarters of WorldFish. The Prince took the opportunity to discuss with WorldFish leadership and Fisheries Malaysia the fragility of ocean ecosystems and the vulnerabilities of the communities that engage with them. He expressed particular interest in the work WorldFish has done in the area of sustainable fish feed that did not draw on ocean resources and the institution\'s wider work towards achieving and contributing towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
At the recent Our Oceans Conference in Malta the Prince articulated threats to the marine environment and its crucial role as a source of prosperity, livelihoods and food security for many regions, countries and communities. The meeting acknowledged that this human element to international discourse on oceans is often missing. WorldFish Director General Designate, Gareth Johnstone also highlighted fish as a powerful means to affect nutrition security where deficiencies of micronutrients and essential fatty acids are widespread among people who obtain most of their energy from staple foods such as wheat, maize and rice.
“It is a real pleasure and an honor for us to host a visit by His Royal Highness,” said Johnstone. “The Prince has become a powerful voice in discussions on oceans sustainability and has long been a strong supporter of sustainable development, particularly in agriculture. We have noted his words of support and many shared areas of interest and goals which will be an inspiration as we take forward our programs to address global development challenges through fisheries and aquaculture.”
The Director General of Fisheries Malaysia, YBhg Dato’ Hj Munir bin Hj Mohd Nawi shared his views on the importance of ensuring sustainable management, utilization and conservation of fisheries resources for future generations. He also underscored the need for concerted regional and international actions to combat Illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing as well as the opportunity to harness on the power of technology to help resolving the problem.
Blake Ratner, Director General, WorldFish: \"Today’s visit to WorldFish by HRH The Prince of Wales is testament to our shared conviction of the strategic importance of fisheries in the ‘blue economy’ – and the role of people-centered science for sustainable development of the small-scale fisheries sector.”
On arrival at the WorldFish headquarters the Prince was shown a small selection of photography highlighting WorldFish work on small scale fisheries as well as research collaboration between WorldFish and Fisheries Malaysia. The half hour meeting was followed by a photo opportunity with WorldFish staff. The visit was undertaken as part of the Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall’s Autumn Tour taking in visits to Singapore, Malaysia and India.
