Malkerns– Fish farmers from the Maguga and Mnjoli dam areas have undergone specialised aquaculture training under a government programme aimed at increasing local fish production and reducing the country’s reliance on imports.
The training was conducted at the Malkerns Aquaculture Centre by the Ministry of Agriculture in partnership with the Taiwan Technical Mission as part of the second phase of the E22 million Aquaculture Project.
Participants received practical instruction in cage fish farming, fish health management, feeding practices, harvesting techniques and business management for aquaculture enterprises.
The programme forms part of government’s broader aquaculture development strategy, which includes the production and distribution of more than one million fingerlings and the expansion of cage culture in the country’s major water bodies.
Figures from the Ministry of Agriculture show that Eswatini consumes about 5 025 tonnes of fish each year, while local producers supply only 165 tonnes. The difference of about 4 860 tonnes is met through imports, which account for more than 90 per cent of the fish consumed in the country.
Addressing the trainees, Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture Sydney Simelane said there was a need to increase domestic fish production to meet local demand. He encouraged farmers to use the skills acquired during the training to improve their production.
Meanwhile, Taiwan Technical Mission Acting Chief Cheng said the mission would continue working with the ministry by providing technical support and sharing expertise to strengthen the country’s aquaculture sector.
The Ministry of Agriculture says the second phase of the project is intended to build farmers’ technical capacity while increasing the availability of fingerlings to support commercial fish production.
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