OCEAN LIFE Volume 3, Number 2, December 2019 E-ISSN: 2580-4529 Pages: 47-53 DOI: 10.13057/oceanlife/o030201 Understanding community perception on aquaculture: Lessons from Mauritius as an ocean state POUVEN NIRSIMLOO 1,♥ , SUSHMA MATTAN-MOORGAWA 1,♥♥ , RANJEET BHAGOOLI 1,2,♥♥♥ 1 Department of Biosciences and Ocean Sciences, Faculty of Science and Pole of Research Excellence, Sustainable Marine Biodiversity, University of Mauritius. Réduit 80837, Republic of Mauritius. Tel.: +230-52533192,  email: pouv520@gmail.com;  s.moorgawa@uom.ac.mu; 2 Institute Oceanography and Environment (INOS), Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, Malaysia.  email: r.bhagooli@uom.ac.mu. Manuscript received: 7 June 2019. Revision accepted: 8 November 2019. Abstract. Nirsimloo P, Mattan-Moorgawa S, Bhagooli R. 2019. Understanding community perception on aquaculture: lessons from Mauritius as an ocean state. Ocean Life 3: 47-53. Aquaculture is considered as one of the fastest food production industry during the past decade and holds high importance in fulfilling the global seafood demand. Globally, limited studies have been conducted on the social acceptability of aquaculture. It thus remains a key challenge to understand the perceptions of people on this subject in order to manage fish farming in a sustainable way. A survey-based approach was developed in order to have an in-depth assessment of perceptions and attitudes of public on aquaculture and its implications on the Blue Economy in Mauritius. Respondents’ percep tions were evaluated on five different aspects of aquaculture, namely, knowledge, socio-economics, environment, food security and implications for a Blue Economy. A total of 385 questionnaires was administered for the study from October 2016 to March 2017 and a response rate of 100% was recorded. Different statistical tests, like Spearman Correlation, Kruskal-Wallis and Chi-Square test, were used to compute data. Descriptive statistical methods revealed that 69.1% of respondents were in favor of expansion of the aquaculture industry in Mauritius. A poor but significant correlation (r=-0.0169, p<0.05) was found between favoring aquaculture expansion and perceived environmental concerns of aquaculture. A chi-square test confirmed a statistically significant association (p<0.05) between educational level of respondents and their knowledge on aquaculture. When aquaculture and Blue Economy in Mauritius were correlated, creation of employment opportunities, ensuring food security and boosting the economy of the country were factors chosen by most respondents to acknowledge the implications of aquaculture on the Blue Economy. Keywords: Aquaculture, attitudes, blue economy, Mauritius, ocean state, perceptions INTRODUCTION Aquaculture is the rearing or farming of aquatic organisms, including fish, shellfish or aquatic plants, in fresh or saltwater (Verbeke et al. 2007). One of the fastest- growing food-producing sectors worldwide has been reported to be aquaculture (FAO 2016). At present, approximately 50 percent of world’s fish that is used for food comes from aquaculture (FAO 2016). It has been predicted that in about a decade after year 2012, the production of fish through aquaculture will surpass that of capture fisheries (FAO 2012). The Mauritian economy is dependent on various sectors and industries, mainly tourism, textile, and sugar. In the last decade, a diversification of sectors has been encouraged by the relevant authorities of Mauritius to ensure the country's long-term economic growth. These new emerging industries include Blue Economy as well as Communication and Technology. Studies done by the Ministry of Fisheries suggested that Mauritius has the potential to develop commercial aquaculture and predicted annual production of 29,000 tonnes of fishes. Promoting export and increasing fish production is the potential of aquaculture industry in Mauritius (Ministry of Agro- Industry and Fisheries & Board of Investment 2007). In most countries practicing fish farming all around the world, the aquaculture sector is still under study (Grigorakis 2009). At present, in Mauritius, aquaculture is not adequately developed to become one of the important pillars of the Mauritian economy. On a global scale, a limited number of studies have been conducted on the social acceptability of aquaculture. In order to manage fish farming in a sustainable way, understanding perceptions of people on this subject remains a key challenge (Bacher et al. 2014). The Blue Economy has crossed a milestone with the promulgation of the Marine Zones Act 2005, thus encouraging the implementation of research and production activities in the maritime zone of Mauritius (Francois 2016). The Mauritian economy is blessed with an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) stretching over 2.3 million Km 2 and also co-manages about 400,000 Km 2 of its continental shelf with the Republic of Seychelles. This makes the Republic of Mauritius the 20 th country in the world with the largest EEZ (Intercontinental Trust Ltd 2013). Some of the islands that form part of the Mauritian territory are Rodrigues, Agalega, Tromelin, St. Brandon and others (Jahangeer 2004). The inhabited islands are Mauritius, Rodrigues, and Agalega. Making the ocean an economic pillar in future years is one of the main objectives of the Mauritian authorities. At present, the economic and exploitation potential of the EEZ of Mauritius is largely untapped.