KENYA -Kenyan President, William Ruto has announced an increased commitment to invest in aquaculture in the Nyanza Region as part of efforts to stimulate economic growth.
President Ruto commenced a four-day development tour of the region by inaugurating the Kabonyo Fisheries Aquaculture Service and Training Centre of Excellence in Kabonyo, Kisumu County.
The newly inaugurated facility is set to play a pivotal role in the region’s aquaculture sector, with the capacity to produce up to 10 million fingerlings annually, primarily aimed at restocking Lake Victoria.
President Ruto highlighted that the initiative will not only create more employment opportunities but also enhance food security and nutrition in the region.
During his address, President Ruto emphasized the critical importance of the fishery industry in the nation’s food production.
“Fishery is an integral pillar in the production of food in the country and it plays a significant role in ensuring food availability and access for the population,” he stated.
In addition to the aquaculture centre, President Ruto revealed that the government is actively constructing eight Fish Landing sites in the region to further bolster the aquaculture sector.
The sites will be equipped with facilities such as cold storage, processing units, and beach management units to maximize profitability for the local communities.
He also expressed his commitment to reviving other agricultural sectors in the region, including rice farming and sunflower production.
He emphasized the government’s resolve to address the challenges facing the sugar industry to stimulate economic growth and create opportunities for farmers.
According to Greenlife Crop Protection Africa, the Kenyan aquaculture sector is broadly categorized into freshwater aquaculture and mariculture (Ocean).
Freshwater aquaculture has recorded significant progress over the last decade but the mariculture sector has yet to be fully exploited.
Meanwhile, the forecast for aquaculture in Kenya is largely positive. In 2025, the Kenyan population is estimated at 56M people. Assuming that the average consumption per capita remains at 4.3 kg per capita, this implies a total estimated consumption of 241,000 tons of fish will be consumed in 2025.
“Kenya is a net exporter of fish, mainly Nile perch and its by-products from Lake Victoria to Netherlands, Israel, Portugal, UAE, Australia and China.”
Earlier this year, fish farmers in the western county of Kakamega received monosex tilapia fingerlings to enable them to start fish rearing in ponds as part of the government’s efforts to boost smallholder aquaculture development in the country.
The ADBP project, jointly funded by the government of Kenya and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), aimed at reaching out to smallholder farmers from 15 counties in Kenya.
About 581 farmers from different counties around the country identified through the Aquaculture Business Development Programme (ABDP) benefitted from 581,000 fingerlings with each of them getting 1000.
