Interest of basic and applied research on Pangasius spp. for aquaculture in the Mekong Delta: situation and prospects

Aquaculture of the Mekong catfish, Pangasius spp., is of major economic interest in the Mekong Delta in Vietnam. The culture of this fish has always been depending on collecting fry and fingerling in the wild, mainly upwards the Mekong River in Cambodia. A collaborative research programme has led, for the first time, to the artificial reproduction of Pangasius bocourti and the biotechnical process has been extended to other species of Pangasius. This work. opens many doors both in terms of research and of development which are described in this paper