The Arowana or Dragon fish (Scleropagus formosus)
is listed in Appendix I of CITES. In the USA all Appendix I species are banned for import by law. Currently (July 2009) no less than 84 breeding farms are registered by CITES (listed in the CITES website) in Malaysia (32), Indonesia (25) and Singapore (27 farms). Several more farms produce for the national markets and are not registered for CITES. The production is rapidly growing with a limited market due to conservation measures. As t seems that wild populations of Dragon fish are no longer utilized for the aquarium industry, it can no longer be argued that trade in general, or international trade in particular, constitutes a threat for the conservation of the Dragon fish - which is a prerequisite
 for CITES listing. It might, therefore, be possible to change the CITES status of specifically captive bred Dragon fish, which could lead to reopening of markets like the USA for Dragonfish.
OFI initiative
To address this issue OFI now takes an initiative which is described in more detail in the pages below.
Invitation