A New Guide to Fish Farming in Kenya

Abstract

Kenya is endowed with numerous aquatic resources with aquacultural potential. It has highly varied climatic and geographic regions, covering a part of the Indian Ocean coastline, a portion of the largest freshwater lake in Africa (Lake Victoria), and several large rivers, swamps, and other wetlands, all of which support an abundance of native aquatic species. These aquatic environments range from marine and brackish waters to cold and warm fresh waters, and many can sustainably contribute to the operation of ponds for fish production. Warmwater fish farming in ponds began in Kenya in the 1920s, initially using tilapia species and later including the common carp and the African catfish. In the 1960s rural fish farming was popularized by the Kenya Government through the “Eat More Fish” campaign; as a result of this effort, tilapia farming expanded rapidly, with the construction of many small ponds, especially in Kenya’s Central and Western Provinces. However, the number of productive ponds declined in the 1970s, mainly because of inadequate extension services, a lack of quality fingerlings, and insufficient training for extension workers. Until the mid 1990s, fish farming in Kenya followed a pattern similar to that observed in many African countries, characterized by small ponds, subsistence-level management, and very low levels of production. Today, following the renovation of several government fish rearing facilities, the establishment of research programs to determine best practices for pond culture, and an intensive training program for fisheries extension workers, there is renewed interest in fish farming in Kenya. Farmers in suitable areas across the country are again turning to fish farming as a way of producing high quality food, either for their families or for the market, and as a way of earning extra income. Because of recent locally conducted research and on-farm trials, farmers are learning that the application of appropriate techniques and good management can result in high yields and a good income. The key to the continued development of fish farming in Kenya is to put the results of research conducted at government and university facilities into practical terms and make them available to farmers, extension workers, and trainers. This manual therefore seeks to make an updated introduction to the basic concepts of fish farming in Kenya available to all who need it. It is designed to follow up on previously available guides, such as An Elementary Guide to Fish Farming, produced by the Fisheries Department in 1987, by synthesizing technological information that has become available during the last 30 years, including research that has been conducted by the Aquaculture Collaborative Research Support Program. Though the manual has been designed for use in Kenya, the authors hope that it will be useful in other parts of Africa as well.