FAO Fisheries & Aquaculture

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Fisheries and for a world without hunger Aquaculture Department National Aquaculture Sector Overview Uganda I. Characteristics, Structure And Resources Of The Sector IV. Trends, Issues And Development a. Summary V. References b. History And General Overview a. Bibliography c. Human Resources b. Related Links d. Farming Systems Distribution And Characteristics e. Cultured Species f. Practices/Systems Of Culture II. Sector Performance a. Production b. Market And Trade c. Contribution To The Economy III. Promotion And Management Of The Sector a. The Institutional Framework b. The Governing Regulations c. Applied Research, Education And Training Characteristics, structure and resources of the sector Summary Uganda produces up to 15 000 tonnes of fish from aquaculture, including production from small-scale fish farmers, emerging commercial fish farmers and stocked community water reservoirs and minor lakes. There are an estimated 20 000 ponds throughout the country with an average surface area of 500 m² per pond. Production ranges between 1 500 kg per hectare per year for subsistence farmers to 15 000 kg per hectare per year for emerging commercial fish farmers. With improved market prices for fish, government intervention for increased production and stagnating supply from capture fisheries, aquaculture has begun to attract entrepreneurial farmers seeking to exploit the business opportunity provided by the prevailing demand for fish. This recent expansion in aquaculture has also resulted in the transformation of 20 percent to 30 percent of the smallholder subsistence ponds into profitable small-scale production units through developments in management as well as scale of production. It is estimated that there are 2 000 such farmers who own nearly 5 000 ponds, with an average pond size of 1 500 m² per pond. The new entrants, mostly from the middle and working class as well as a few businessmen, target specific and established markets. They have adopted improved production systems including inputs from technical experts for better planning and management. Pond surface is in the range of 5 000 m² to 50 000 m² numbering 500, an estimated 20 percent to 30 percent of which are active. This category includes commercial hatchery operators and a number of grow-out farmers who are already exporting to markets in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya and Rwanda. Industrial and more intensified fish culture is only beginning to be established, largely through foreign direct investment or as joint ventures between local firms and foreign companies. Most farms/companies at this level are only in the process of putting their infrastructure in place or are at the initial stages of the production process. The majority of such companies is targeting production at the regional markets and plans to enter international markets by activating the currently non-utilized fish processing capacity in the country. History and general overview FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department Aquaculture in Uganda is recorded to have started in 1941 after carp was imported into the country. Fish farming was officially proposed by the colonial authorities and the Kajjansi Fish Experimental Station established in 1947. However, the introduction of carp, was embroiled in controversies due to differences among the lead scientists on the possible adverse impact of common carp on the indigenous aquatic environment in case they escaped from the confines of the fishponds. Because of this, it was decided to use tilapia for stocking purposes. A vigorous fish farming extension programme resulted in the construction of 1 500 ponds by 1956; these were concentrated in the central region (Buganda) and the most southwestern part of the country (Kigezi). In 1959-1960 an FAO- supported comparative evaluation of carp and tilapia endorsed the use of carp and resulted in further expansion of aquaculture in Uganda. Aquaculture was further promoted under the drive for rural development, and by late 1968 the Department of Fisheries recorded up to 11 000 ponds mostly producing fish for subsistence. However, subsistence farming was largely based on the supply of seed from farmer to farmer and/or from the government station, which hampered the expansion of the aquaculture sub-sector. Changing policies under successive governments also led to uneven support and many farmers abandoned ponds due to lack of stocking materials, limited technical guidance and excessive government regulatory regimes. The Fisheries Master Plan study of 1999 established that Uganda had only 4 500 functioning ponds with only a portion stocked, producing 285 tonnes of fish annually. With the government's strategic intervention and support from development partners such as FAO, aquaculture has picked up once again reaching 15 000 tonnes of fish currently (2005) produced from 20 000 ponds of an average size of 500 m². Due to the limited availability of fish seed, carp has fallen out of favour, and North African catfish, along with Nile tilapia, has taken its place. Although fish farming in Uganda has so far been pond- and subsistence-based, the growing interest in commercial aquaculture is providing an impetus towards cage-culture based aquaculture. Human resources There are currently an estimated 12 000 farmers involved in aquaculture, with about 150 service providers or extension workers employed by local governments. In 50 of the 56 districts there is an officer employed by the local government in charge of technical guidance and management of the aquaculture sub-sector. Another estimated 100 technical persons with basic training in fisheries and aquaculture work as private service providers under the privatised, demand driven and farmer managed extension and advisory system. At the Ministry headquarters (Department of Fisheries Resources) there is an Aquaculture Unit headed by a Principal Fisheries Officer who is in charge of 5 Senior Fisheries Officers and 4 support staff. The Aquaculture Unit reports to the Assistant Commissioner for Fisheries. There are 100 managers for the upcoming commercial fish farms, some of whom have received formal training in fisheries and aquaculture. Under each of these farm managers there is an average of 3 labourers who support the manager on the farm. In addition, around 20 000 specialized manual labourers, who are mostly part-time, undertake tasks such as construction of ponds and water and diversion channels, site clearance, stocking and seining at harvesting. There are also some specialized groups of youth who undertake pond construction on a contract basis. Farming systems distribution and characteristics The Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries has identified 31 districts as suitable for fisheries and aquaculture development based on both natural and socio-economic factors. These districts are: Mayuge, Jinja, Bugiri, Busia, Mukono, Mpigi, Wakiso, Masaka, Rakai, Mbarara, Bushenyi, Ntungamo, Kasese, Hoima, Masindi, Nebbi, Gulu, Adjumani, Arua, Kamuli, Soroti, Lira, Iganga, Tororo, Pallisa, Mbale, Apac, Kabiramaido, Kabarole, Kamwenge and Kyenjojo. They are located around the country's major water systems including Lake Victoria Crescent, Lake Kyoga basin, River Nile catchment, Edward-George complex and the Koki lakes. The most common production systems at all these locations are extensive and semi-intensive pond based aquaculture systems. Cultured species FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department With its good quality growth characteristics, easy production of fish seed and good taste across the country, Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus ) was until recently the most farmed species. Nile tilapia was transplanted from Lake Albert to restock Lakes Victoria and Kyoga and several of their surrounding minor lakes and adjoining river systems. Through restocking programmes and aquaculture, it has been planted in virtually all Uganda waters including shared/transboundary water bodies. The only drawback is its prolific reproduction and the seemingly resultant stuntedness. North African catfish (Clarias gariepinus ) has recently overtaken Nile tilapia as the most popular species for aquaculture in Uganda. Rural farmers have grown fond of it, and there is a growing regional market for this species. Its main characteristics are its fast growth and ability to literally feed on anything organic available at household level. This species is found in all waters of Uganda, especially those linked to swamps, and it has traditionally been a primary target for a good segment of the fishing community. North African catfish currently contributes an estimated 60 percent of aquaculture production in Uganda. The most limiting aspect of the culture of the catfish in Uganda is the availability of good quality and sufficient fish seed as when required by the grow-out farmers. This has been largely overcome with support from FAO. Fish seed for North African catfish can easily be produced in quantities demanded by grow-out farmers. The third most frequent species is the common carp (Cyprinus carpio ) which was first introduced from Israel in 1941 with the aim of stocking the fingerlings in the relatively colder waters of Lake Bunyonyi in southwestern Uganda. However, propagation of this species was only successful in the late 1940s and was first tried out with farmers in the early 1950s in the Buganda region in central Uganda followed by Kigezi in southwestern Uganda. The common carp did much better than tilapia and was preferred

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