Kakamega County has begun supplying 581,000 Monosex Tilapia fingerlings to support farmers to start rearing fish in ponds.
The Aquaculture Business Development Programme (ABDP) has identified 581 farmers to benefit from 581, 000 fingerlings with each of them getting 1000.
The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the Government of Kenya jointly fund the ABDP, a programme designed to boost smallholder aquaculture development in 15 counties, Kakamega being one of them.
The largest fisherman in Kakamega With assistance from the county government, Laban Mwanzo, owner of Labed Cash Marine Business Fish Farm in Malava, provides farmers with fingerlings from his farm.
More than 2 million fingerlings are produced by Labed Fish Farm each month, with each fingerling selling for Kes2.50. They currently supply 44 farmers in Navakholo and 51 farmers in Lurambi.
Mwanzo noted that other counties have received less than 300 000 fingerlings compared to Kakamega.
“ Farmers who have benefited from the fingerlings will also get fish feeds to support them to cut costs of feeding,” he said.