On April 9-10, 2026, an official delegation from the Fisheries Research and Production Center (Fisheries RPC) visited Shihezi University in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR), PRC. The Kazakh delegation was led by Director General A.S. Suyubayev, First Deputy Director General S.Zh. Assylbekova, Executive Director K.B. Isbekov, and Leading Researcher R.T. Barakov. They were joined by M. Finogenov, Director of “IP DWS” LLP.
Host Representatives: The hosting side was represented by the Dean of the Faculty, Zhang Hui, along with Professors and Lecturers Nie Cunxi, Liu Han, and Zhao Jing. The meeting was moderated by Luo Xialing. The delegation was also welcomed by representatives of the Livestock and Fisheries Development Center of the 8th District of Shihezi, Gao Jing and Ding Yuwei.
Key Discussion Points: The parties discussed the current state of aquaculture and the development of the fisheries industry in both Kazakhstan and XUAR. Focus was placed on joint scientific projects for cultivating commercially valuable fish species (such as zander and cyprinids) and other aquatic organisms, including the Pacific freshwater shrimp and narrow-clawed crayfish.
Priority Cooperation Areas: Two main directions for future scientific collaboration were identified:
Cultivation of cold-water aquaculture species.
Development of brackish-water aquaculture.
Outcomes: The meeting concluded with a mutual commitment to developing joint research projects aimed at strengthening science-business integration. The participants also discussed the drafting of a Memorandum of Understanding to formalize their partnership.
Field Visit: Following the official presentations, the delegation toured modern laboratory facilities and observed the working conditions of the scientific staff. The visit concluded with a trip to the “Zhong Miao” farm, which specializes in hatching Pacific freshwater shrimp larvae using tank-based technology and rearing them to market size in ponds. According to administrative data, a 0.6-hectare pond yields approximately 400 kg of marketable shrimp. In the Chinese market, these shrimps are sold at a price of 40–60 yuan per shrimp.
