In order to sustain fish farming, expand, as well as boost fish production in Imo State, fish farmers, operating under the aegis of Fishery Cooperative Federation, Imo State Branch, have requested land for fish clusters, low interest loan or grants to enable them to procure fish feeds, fishing nets, among others for their fishes.
The group informed that the major challenge they face is high cost of fish feed, as maize and grains which are being mainly imported from Ukraine and Russia no longer come in bulk as usual given to the territorial war ravaging the two agriculture giant countries, remarking that the little available ones (feeds) are costly in the open market.
Speaking in Owerri, last week, an executive member of Fishery Cooperative Federation, Imo State, Sir Martin Ojike, affirmed that despite the problems of high cost of feed, fund and land clusters, fishery thrives in Imo State, saying “there are many places where fish can be grown in Imo. For example, in Umuna where there is about 17 to 18 Ponds, each of them can contain more than 3000 Cart Fish. You can even grow fish in your home. This method is called ‘Home State Pond’- either concrete or otherwise. Hence we are requesting land for Fish Clusters, low interest loan or grants to enable us farm productively because Fish feed is costly in the market now.”
Ejike while noting that fish can even eat anything like intestine of bird which makes fish to taste good, advised people to take more of fish as it contains rich protein to be healthy. “Fish is high in protein, it lessens the burden of high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke and other diseases. Animal protein we consume contains more cholesterol. It is now adjudged or approved that fish protein is the best. If you ask any medical doctor or food nutritionist he or she will say fish protein is the best form of protein, so people have to take more of fish to be alive and healthy.”
Ejike maintained that if government invests hugely on Fishery Business in Imo, the huge money spent on importing Frozen Fish which easily get spoilt before reaching here would have been drastically reduced. “Hence we are making it known to government that we can empower our people to farm fish to beat poverty and vulnerability. There is now much scientific knowledge whereby we can produce tons of fish per annum, so that we can feed our people and then export fish to the world.”
The Vice President hinted that the corporative is committed to bringing to the fore the importance of fisheries, as well as adding value to the food chain of Imo State and the federation at large to lessen the burden of fish importation into the state and in country general.
Adding his voice, Secretary of the Fishery Cooperative, Mr. Victor Anyanwu, revealed that fish farmers “source money individually to equip our farms. We are only producing to the reach of our individual capacities. The fish we produce is on individual capacity. As a corporative, we are still beckoning on government to help us to access Soft Loan to boost our capacity in fish production. The little assistance we hear that will soon come to us should come quickly. We beckon on NICEL Micro- Finance Bank to which forms have been issued and submitted to also help out. So, if money is made available to all our members, I believe we can boost food and fish production across board.”
Disclosing that the group has been in existence for the past 3 years, Anyanwu stated that no valid chain in fishery had received any fund in Imo. Yes, we are progressing on individual capacity that is why we organized ourselves as a corporative, the more we are united and the more we improve our performance as we encourage each other. We built market for ourselves through online transaction where we advertise our products – then marketers would purchase there and physically too people can visit your farm via the media publication of your farm – they can come down there and purchase your fish”.
Contributing, one of the executive members of the Fishery Cooperative Federation, Prince Epum Esq, stressed that the cost of fish production is very exorbitant and weighs negatively on those in the fish value chain business. “Feeds are very expensive, running Fish Ponds is expensive. You know, with the level of explosion we have in our society even the fishermen are not doing well in terms of catching fish because the fishes have gone into deep waters.”
Epum harped the need for government’s immediate intervention. “Government has the capacity or potential to do much to help cushion the adverse effects of high cost of feed (which is telling much on farmers). We have 8 Ponds at Onuimo which government acquired for the past 10 years which is not operational. This place can be leased to Fishing Corporative Federation, so that they can energise it and make it more functional and it is cheaper to operate Earth Ponds because they are natural habitats than to operate artificial Fish Ponds”.
Epum added that “if you feed well you hardly get sick. Most sickness suffered is as a result of food imbalance. The 3 components of fish are Carbohydrate, Protein and Fat and Oil. Under Fat and Oil you have Fatty Acid and Amino Acid that help the body to regenerate. Protein, you know what it does to the body. Carbohydrate is much in cow. Cow has high carbon content that is not too healthy and is cancerous. Fish is very natural, it contains Fatty Acid that helps the body to build naturally and helps to address a lot of sicknesses because of the immune component system it has”, remarking that the corporative has 3 value chain network: fishermen, those who are into fish market and related businesses and others incorporated into the Corporative Federation, who are doing their work effectively and separately.
Appealing to Imo State and Federal Governments to allow Fishery Cooperative to take over the abandoned Onuimo Fish Farm Settlement owned by State and Federal Governments to revive it to enhance fish production, one of the leaders of the corporative, Hon. Kingsley Uzoigwe, regretted that the Fish Pond is “lying fallow. We have told them that we ought to take them over and run them, even Oguta area and some other farms lying fallow. Imo River Basin is there. We have reached out to government to allow us to control those abandoned fishery settlements and develop them to create employment to teeming Imo indigenes.
He said when such a feat is realized fishery capacity would be doubled. “We want abundant fish harvest in Imo and we are ready to do that. Let government give us benefit of doubt, give us those areas we demanded, we will increase fish production in Imo as a corporative. We have made move to see and discuss with Federal Ministry of Fisheries on many aspects to enlarge our coast. We have a target that every member should have at least close to 2000 to 3000 fishes. We have farms here and there in the 27 LGAs. We advise Imo people to queue into Fishery Business, because in 2024, there will be no meet in Imo State, people will now eat fish.”
