Farmers find solace in group farming

Most fish in Uganda comes from lakes Victoria, Albert, Kyoga, Edward, George and about 160 minor lakes and rivers.

Fish production of most lakes in Uganda has changed considerably since development of most of the fisheries started during the first half of the 20th century.

Fish farming on Lake Kyoga in Uganda primarily focuses on commercially valuable introduced species such as Nile perch and Nile tilapia. The Nile perch was introduced into Lake Victoria in 1954.

However, the lake also supports a variety of other native fish species, with mukene (Rastrineobola argentea) being another significant catch, though its population has fluctuated over time.

Against this background, Seeds of Gold interacted with Ms Catherine Akello who has engaged in fish farming right from her childhood to date.

Background

Ms Akello says she grew up while farming fish on Bangladesh landing site in L Kyoga where they mostly fish tilapia and Nile perch. She is a qualified accountant having completed her studies in 2004 at Makerere University. She is also teacher and an entrepreneur. Ms Akello who hails from Nansale Sub-county in Amolator District, is the team leader of an association comprising 30 members. The group is called Bagala fishing association.

How the farming business all started

In 2020, Ms Akello ventured into the fish value chain where she joined other fishermen in Lake Kyoga and purchased a boat to invest in silverfish farming.

This is after a team of scientists from the National Agricultural Fisheries Resources Research Institute in Jinja came on ground with partners from Germany International Cooperation Society to sensitise the members about the entire fish value chain.

“The value chain starts with monitoring the fish breeding process, going in the waters to fish the right size of fish in a bid to obtain the expected income and smoking processing up to marketing stage,” Ms Akello says.

Fish trading

Ms Akello explains that her group members are engaged in fish trade where others sell their fish in local markets within Lango Sub-region though some have found a market in Kampala.

Those trading in Kampala deal mainly in selling tilapia and Nile perch and in most cases they conduct consignments twice a week.

“The market in Kampala is better than selling at the landing site. Each kilogrammes of Nile perch at Busega market goes for Shs11,000 while tilapia averagely trades at Shs9,000,”says Ms Akello.

Challenges

Fishermen and traders at the Bangladesh landing site on Lake Kyoga have expressed deep concerns over the increasing theft of boat engines and alleged attacks by soldiers, which have heightened insecurity in one of Uganda’s most vital fishing hubs.

Mr Isaac Olwa one of the boat owners, says the surge in crime has caused significant losses leaving the community in a state of fear and uncertainty.

“On several occasions we clash with security who impound and burn our nets. This has led to several farmers turning their back from the enterprise,” says Mr Olwa.

According to Ms Akello, the thieves, believed to be from neighbouring districts, specifically target boat engines, leaving fishermen stranded in the water, and in some tragic cases, causing fatal accidents.

“These thieves come from our brothers and sisters from neighbouring districts and DRC. They often find us on the water when we are fishing, attack us, and take away our engines. When you try to resist, they beat you with pangas, and sometimes people fall into the water and drown,” Mr Olwa says.

However, the fishermen’s grievances go beyond theft and security issues. Many expressed frustration over government fishing policies, especially the ban on silver fish fishing, which they say has worsened their economic situation.

Recommendation

Mr Olwa recommends that fishermen work in groups and follow self-regulations as well as share information about the fish value chain.

“The fishermen must attend sensitisation meetings in order to get solutions from other landing sites and learn how they are doing it differently,” he says.