Cambodia
[Remarks as Prepared]
CHOOM REAP SUOR! AY-OO-DOM, LOK CHOM TEAV, OH LOK, LOK SREY, NEAK NEANG KANHA CHEA TEE KORUP.
Your Excellency Has Sareth, Secretary of State, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. Dr. Brian Sandoval President of the University of Nevada, Reno. Distinguished ladies and gentlemen.
It is an honor to join you here today to release endangered and ecologically important fish species into the wild at this important junction between the Tonle Sap and Mekong Rivers.
The Mekong is home to more than 1000 fish species, yet pressures like climate change, overfishing, and construction of dams and other infrastructure continue to threaten many iconic fish species. Examples include the giant barb which is the “National fish of Cambodia” and the striped catfish which were once a staple in the regional diet but have seen sharp declines and are now classified as endangered.
Cambodia’s stretch of the Mekong and the Tonle Sap watershed is seen as a last refuge for many of these endangered freshwater fish in Southeast Asia. Combining cutting edge science with community outreach and advocacy projects like Wonders of the Mekong are critical in the fight to conserve endangered wildlife along the Mekong.
Last year, researchers with the Wonders of the Mekong in partnership with communities and the Cambodian Fisheries Administration deployed the first ever acoustic telemetry network in Cambodia as part of an international effort to track and study the migration of important Mekong fish species - including some of the fish being released today.
Today’s release of two tagged Mekong giant catfish shines a spotlight on the plight of a species whose population has likely decreased by over 90 percent in recent decades. Scientists hope this will lead to more concerted and coordinated conservation action, including greater outreach to communities living along the Tonle Sap and Mekong rivers.
In addition to conservation, we cannot forget the critical role that fisheries play in nutrition and food security of Cambodians. Fish is the primary source protein in the Cambodian diet with the average Cambodian consuming up to 37 kg of fish per year - one of the highest rates of fish consumption in the world. Therefore, it is also very important to preserve healthy, natural fisheries to help Cambodia continue its progress to reduce levels of malnutrition and stunting.
Once again, I am excited to be here today and appreciate the great work of our Wonders of the Mekong team. It is essential that we continue to work together to save and conserve endangered and other ecologically important fish in order to keep the Mekong healthy and maintain natural ecosystems to support communities, wildlife, nutrition, and economic activity across Cambodia
Thank you very much. Awkun ch’raan.