THE Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources on Friday harvested about 2,3 metric tonnes of tilapia fish at the Mpungu Fish Farm at Nkurenkuru in Kavango East.
Speaking at the farm’s first-ever harvest, fisheries minister Bernhard Esau said fish farming is practical in these parts of the country as seven metric tonnes of fish were also harvested last week at Epalela Fish Farm in the Onesi constituency of Omusati region.
“Mpungu Fish Farm demonstrates true cooperation between the government, the community and the private sector in addressing food insecurity,” he said.
His ministry, Esau said, is convinced that there is great potential to produce fish at Mpungu, owing to abundant water, good soil and the right climate in the region.
It is for those reasons that the ministry is determined to establish a practical training facility to help farmers in the area to acquire practical skills on how to produce fish in a cost-effective manner, he said.
“I would like to see new facilities such as training halls, full renovation of current buildings and expansion of current fish ponds completed within the next year,” the minister said.
Esau expressed gratitude to the National Fishing Corporation of Namibia (Fishcor) for providing fish feeds and helping in the infrastructure development of the fish ponds as well as renovations of the farm.
Fishcor is a government company established to assist in the development of the fisheries sector.
The minister urged cooperative workers and ministry officials to ensure that they double or even triple fish production at the farm by next year.
“We must all work together to take aquaculture production here at Nurenkuru and in all areas with aquaculture potential to the next level,” he noted.
The minister said there is enough demand for fish in local markets, adding that he was informed of increasing imports of tilapia being sold in Kavango West and other areas in the country. – Nampa
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