Title: Development of an evaluation instrument for good management practices in Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) pond aquaculture in Costa Rica.

Tilapia farming in Costa Rica is growing, and environmental problems will escalate without proper aquaculture regulation and compliance monitoring. To support sustainable aquaculture, farm performance must be measured to identify, analyze, and address barriers that prevent sustainable development in tilapia production. A diagnostic instrument was designed to verify the degree of management performance of tilapia aquaculture. A baseline of Management Subjects and Guidelines was established based on literature review and expert consultations. The instrument was tested on 50 pond-system tilapia farms across the seven provinces of Costa Rica. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze compliance in each evaluated management subject. Pearson’s multiple correlations were then conducted to assess any potential interactions between the subjects. The results showed that 31 farms were in critical condition, 18 in regular condition, and 1 in good condition. Key challenges included permits, ecosystem care, and training, with biosecurity being positively correlated with all subjects. Most farmers keep businesses on a small scale, with direct sales to local buyers, and lack records of production and profits. Medium- and large-scale producers have more capacity to comply with guidelines, indicating that regulation cannot be the same for each scale company. Authorization processes need restructuring to include microproducers with simpler requirements. Aquaculture planning programs should include capacity support, progress monitoring, evaluation of results, and continuous capacity building for technicians to improve the results during the training of farmers. The instrument will help develop national policies, define appropriate training programs, and increase the performance of farms, and in the future, can be useful as a tracking mechanism.