admin | September 26, 2021
News Brief
Despite the presence of three lakes in eastern DRC’s North Kivu and Ituri provinces, residents and officials say there is a shortage of fish. To cope, many residents of North Kivu and Ituri rely on fish farming. But setting up a fish pond is not easy. It can cost $300 US to build a dam and shape the pond. Joachim Kahindo Kayikomera is a fish farmer and member of the managerial education center for integrated development, or CEMADI. He says the recommended dimensions for a fish pond are 10 metres by 40 metres. A pond of this size can raise up to 800 tilapia or 2,000 catfish.
Despite the presence of three lakes in eastern DRC’s North Kivu and Ituri provinces, in eastern DRC, residents and officials in these provinces say there is report a shortage of fish. And aAccording to the Department of Agriculture, Fishing and Livestock, the scarcity is due to poor fishing practices.
To try to compensate for this scarcity, some people have begun to import fish from neighbouring countries, even though neighbouring these countries share the same lakes.
For some time now, residents of North Kivu and Ituri have been reliedant on fish farming. Fish ponds now dominate the valleys and plains of these provinces.
Agroveterinarian Louange Kazi explains, “The valley bottoms are made up of swamps which were often used to cultivate tarots, sweet potatoes, etc. It turned out that these are the best places to maintain fish ponds.”
But setting up a fish pond is not easy. It can A single pond of 500 fish can cost $300 USD for five or six men to remove the mud in the swamps,, and to build the damn and the shapecontour of the pond to contain the water needed for just 500 fish. Then, grasses and flowers are planted beside the pond to control erosion.
Joachim Mr. Kahindo Kayikomera Joachim is a fish farmer and member of the managerial education center for integrated development, or (CEMADI). He says:, “It takes courage—, to carry out the study of the soil study, to have a lot of water in a place where you want to erect build the pond, to have a very fertile soil. After having met all these conditions, we can now dig the pond.”
He says the recommended dimensions for a fish pond is are 10 metres by 40 metres. According to several fish farmers, a pond of this size can raise up to 800 tilapia fry, or 2,000 catfishclaria fry. Fry are small juvenile fish in a juvenile stage.
Mr. Kazi, the aAgroveterinarian, adds that its ist also important to “think about fertilizing the soil for the proper development of phytoplankton, which are micro-vegetation that serve as food for fish, and to be sure that the water is not polluted by factories.”
Aimé Kibendelwa is a coordinator for a group called Youth for Progress and Good Governance, or (JPROG,) in the Lubero territory. The group, which supervises several young people in agriculture, fishing, and breeding.
He says:, “The fingerlings used in the region are bought in Uganda. Once in Butembo, [a city in North Kivu], a specimen costs between $0.50 and $1 USD, depending on the species. You have to wait between one or two years, depending on the wishes of the fish farmer, to think about harvesting. But we also have to think about feeding the fish well.”
Production and pricing of the fish depends on the species. Sometimes, a single fish can sell for an average of 3,000 CDF Congolese francs (about $1.50 USD), while others can sell for up to 10,000 CDF (about $5 USD).
Mr. Kahindo Kayikomera Joachim of CEMADI says, “The first harvest makes it possible to recover the investments. It is from the second or third harvest that we start to reap the benefits.”
This story is based on an article written by Serge Nzanzu and published by ICI CONGO on July 27, 2021, titled “Ruée vers les étangs piscicoles pour pallier la carence en poisson à l’Est de la RDC.” To read the full story, go to: https://icicongo.net/2021/07/27/ruee-vers-les-etangs-piscicoles-pour-pallier-la-carence-en-poisson-a-lest-de-la-rdc/