The Aquaculture Business Development Program (ABDP) has introduced pond fish farming for tilapia cultivation in schools in Kisumu County.
The initiative aims to reduce the rising food expenses and enhance the school feeding program.
The County Project Coordinator, Kevin Wamira, noted that ABDP supported pond construction and donated pond liners, predator kits, tilapia fingerlings, fish feeds, cone garden materials and extension services to the benefiting schools.
“The objective of the programme conducted in partnership with the Kisumu County Directorate of Fisheries is to support school feeding program through fish farming and dietary diversity through kitchen gardening,” Wamira observed.
The ABDP team successfully harvested 278.14 kilograms of tilapia fish at St. Agnes Muhoroni primary school in Muhoroni Sub County.
The school’s headteacher, Charles Abonyo, lauded the initiative saying that the fish harvest would go a long way in supplementing the usual diet of githeri, rice and beans to provide learners with sufficient proteins.
The project has established a community-based resource center for learning about Competency Based Curriculum.
Abonyo urged regional schools to increase their resources for pond fish farming to maximize its benefits.
He noted that the learners have fully embraced kitchen gardening in the school, with some further cascading the practice to their homes.
By Robert Ojwang’
