FCT fish farmers drilled on efficient hatchery mgt

By Stanley Onyekwere

In furtherance of efforts to boost fish production in Abuja, towards meeting the growing demand by residents, the Agricultural Development Project (ADP) of the FCT Agriculture and Rural Development Secretariat (ARDS) has trained 60 fish farmers in the FCT on effective management of fish hatchery.
The training was organised in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMRAD).
Addressing participants at the programme, the Director, FCT ADP, Mr. Musa Doma said the objective of the 3-day training programme, which is in line with the present Administration’s Agricultural Promotion Programme (APP), to equip the fish farmers with the necessary modern skills that will enable them graduate into large scale commercial fish farmers.
According to him, FCT has enormous potentials in the Fishery Sector which if properly harnessed can become a viable source of livelihood for the farmers.
“As you know, the FCT is home to all Nigerians including foreign nationals and I believe that with the present level awareness on the health benefits of fish, farmers will be able to earn more income from it.
“So what we are doing as a government agency, is to create the enabling environment that will help boost the production of Fish to meet the ever increasing demands of FCT residents,” he stressed.
Also speaking, the Desk Officer of the Fisheries Unit of the Project, Mr. Samson Anawo said the practical session will enable the participants to have firsthand knowledge of modern and improved methods of Fish breeding and multiplication with little or no mortality.
Anawo added that the Secretariat has put in place measures to monitor the progress of the participants.
He explained: “We have taken all the necessary information on each participant which will enable us to follow- up on their activities with the aim of providing them with any technical assistance they might require.”