Fish farmers in Migori County received a financial boost of Shs1.2 million from the Norland grant under the Aquaculture Business Development Program (ABDP).
Sammy Macharia, National Program Coordinator of ABDP, confirmed that the grant aims to fill nutrition gaps and build capacity for the agribusiness community in the County.
“As we aim at capacity building among the fisher folks, we will also do smart kiosks to help the farmers reach more markets globally,” said Macharia.
The initiative includes smart fish kiosks to provide global markets and cold storages at fish landing sites for longer fish preservation.
The ABDP will support artisanal fish farmers in groups of 30, and the program targets Migori, Nyeri, and Vihiga counties in Kenya.
Through the same initiative, we will also support the county government to empower artisanal fish farmers in groups of 30 people each,” said Macharia.
The grant project covers Kenya, Tanzania, and Mozambique, focusing on empowering farmers.
Agnes from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), commended the county government and farmers for embracing the project.
“As we embark on this life changing project for farmers, I want to congratulate the County government and the farmers for their readiness to embrace the project,” added Agnes.
George Ochola, Chief Officer for Fisheries in Migori, announced the grant funding for 29 fish cages, covering the entire county, including Nyatike.
“We have received 29 cages which will come in two lots,” said the Chief Officer
The county established a cold storage at Got Kachola and aims to reduce losses for fish farmers.
Rebecca Marito, acting Director of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development, emphasized the grant’s goal of improving fish production and creating ready markets.
The grant will also renovate fish landing sites and address perishability issues.
At the fish landing sites, the cold storages will also act as sites for value addition sites for the fish so that we attract more markets. This will help famers match competitors from other countries like Canada,” said Rebecca.
Ruth Okeyo, Awendo Samaki Women Chairperson, and Millicent Atieno praised the efforts to enhance the fishing industry, highlighting the importance of cold storages in marketplaces to reduce fish perishability.
They acknowledged the combined efforts of the National and County governments in boosting local production, emphasizing agriculture’s significance to Kenya’s economy.
“The main problem we have in these fish markets is the perishability of fish before we sell them to the final consumers. Putting up cold storages in the market places will reduce the problem,” said Ruth.
KTMN Reporter