Tilapia fingerling production at the Hardap Inland Aquaculture Centre remains relatively stable, with output reaching about 80% of its annual target despite operational constraints.
This is according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Land Reform.
Ministry spokesperson Romeo Muyunda told Nampa in a recent interview that the aquaculture centre comprises 11 grow-out units, including five open ponds and six tunnelled ponds.
The five open ponds are currently not operational due to incomplete waterproofing. Of the tunnelled ponds, three operate as semi-intensive systems and three as extensive systems, with only four ponds fully stocked and in use.
Fingerling production at the facility is demand-driven, based on requests from small-scale fish farmers and prospective aquaculture entrants. Over the past five years, the centre has produced an average of approximately 80 000 fingerlings per season.
Muyunda said production levels are influenced by the availability of fish feed, limited holding space and logistical capacity for distribution. The absence of a hatchery further constrains breeding, which is limited to natural cycles during the warmer months from October to March.
He noted that annual fish production at the centre averages between 1.5 and 2 metric tonnes, below full capacity. He, however, emphasised that the facility has historically not operated at optimal levels due to structural constraints, particularly limited budget allocations.
“These limitations affect procurement of essential inputs, availability of manpower, as well as maintenance and upgrading of infrastructure,” he said.
Muyunda said oversight of the facility falls within the ministry’s institutional framework, from operational to ministerial level, adding that the challenges affecting production have been acknowledged.
“The number of fingerlings on site currently exceeds the requested amount by farmers, but they are not yet in the hands of the farmers,” he said.
He added that the ministry is committed to rehabilitating infrastructure and improving production levels by December this year, while assuring the public that operational information and progress updates will be made available upon request.
The Hardap Inland Aquaculture Centre plays a central role in Namibia’s inland fish farming programme, producing tilapia fingerlings which are supplied at subsidised prices to small-scale farmers in the Hardap, //Kharas, Khomas, Omaheke, Otjozondjupa and Erongo regions.
The centre also supplies fingerlings to other government aquaculture facilities, including the Leonardville Fish Farm in the Omaheke region, where fish are grown to market size.
The facility was established to support inland fisheries development by breeding freshwater fish and supplying tilapia fingerlings to small-scale farmers across several regions of the country.
– Nampa