KATIMA MULILO – The Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources, Bernard Esau, accompanied by the Spanish Ambassador to Namibia, Carmen Diez, on Thursday inaugurated the inland aquaculture centre in Katima Mulilo.
The Governor of the Zambezi Region, Laurence Sampofu, accompanied them.
The centre is a complete facility able to produce fingerlings of tilapia and catfish, both indigenous species from the region, and aims at providing good quality fingerlings as well as technical support and training to local aquaculture farmers, stated the Embassy of Spain yesterday.
The guests visited the various installations and equipment of the centre, including the breeding ponds, the hatchery laboratory and office, the nursery and the sedimentation pond. The facility, which is located near the Zambezi River, has a production capacity per season of 1.5 million fingerlings.
“Therefore, it will ensure the improvement of food security of the population by means of enhancing fish production,” said the Spanish Embassy in a statement.
This important investment is part of a broader project to support aquaculture in Namibia.
Other components of the project are specialized training for aquaculture (together with Unam), technical assistance to improve the fish feed plant in Onavivi (Omusati Region), and assessment of marketing of fish and various activities to boost fish farmers.
The total funds allocated from Spain for this project are N$16 million.
The ambassador remarked that the Spanish Government has been collaborating with Namibia during the last 25 years in working towards human sustainable development and the fight against poverty, especially for the most vulnerable people in rural and suburban areas.