LBDA seeks to produce 1 million fingerlings per month

The Lake Basin Development Authority (LBDA) has moved to boost aquaculture in the Nyanza region where it aims to produce one million fingerlings per month.

LBDA has stocked an average of 42,000 broodstock which have the capacity to produce 1 million fingerlings per month effective December 2024 at its fingerlings multiplication centre, Kbos farms.

“This will not only support fish farming in the region but also enhance the own source revenue to the Authority. Our fingerlings multiplication centre at Kbos farms plays a critical role in the aquaculture value chain,” LBDA Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Wycliffe Ochiaga said.

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In an annual report of LBDA for the fiscal year 2023-2024, the MD said they have partnered with several organisations to transform the region.

The partnership with Great Lakes University of Kisumu, Maseno University, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University, the Kisumu National Polytechnic and Aquarech Limited, seeks to transfer knowledge to actors in the value chain.

LBDA also targets to produce at least 17,000 tons of paddy rice in the 2024-2025 financial year.

Ochiaga said this would be done through installation of proper infrastructure and support from the national government.

In a bid to enhance sustainability, the authority operationalized its Rice Mill enterprise that targeted to mill and sell at least 80 tons of paddy in the year ended June 2024.

Moreover, the authority continued to offer a ready market for beekeepers and enhance the value addition of apiculture and also provided essential resources to beekeepers, including bee colonies, beekeeping equipment, and organic inputs within a year.

“The apiculture value chain encompasses the entire system of production, processing, and marketing of honey and other bee-related products,” Ochiaga said.

He assured that they would continue building on their achievements, overcome challenges, and write the next chapter of success for the authority.