Fishculture is well established in Western Kenya, and the fertilisation levels controlled in ponds (see appendix 2 and 3) are good indicators for pond management evaluation. However, the lack of adequate book-keping records permitting yield calculation and cost-benefit analysis is a major failure for socio-economic evaluation and benefit calculation. It must be reviewed in both FPC and Fish farmers records, providing to fishfarmers adequate training and facilities.
Several technical topics are to be reviewed on site selection and pond construction matter:
slope of dikes are often too straight to permit Tilapia nest-building in high altitude; everywhere, such dikes are quickly eroded.
Clarias propagation is very interesting in the context of Western Kenya fishculture (for polyculture and bait production) and must be investigated to provide to fishfarmers successful appropriate technical package for increasing the fingerlings survival rate. An efficient fishfeed has been identified at the end of the mission as a powdered mixture of Omena-shrimps (80%) and rice bran (20%) at low-cost (65KSh/2Kg) to be tested on Clarias larvae for fast-growth in protected ponds (plastic fences around).
Several advanced fishfarmer groups are becoming well-organised and this must be encouraged by complementary training on techniucal matters,book-keeping records and credit facilities, with a view to developing self-helping assistance between fishfarmers themselves
Experienced LBDA extensionists must be exclusively employed to training, site selection and major technical duties when other extensionists (DOF & Agriculture) can provide usual pond management training and by-products facilities.
Some specific topics as fishculture in high altitude, adequate slection of genitors and adequate fish feed systems must be provide in specific trainings to appropriate beneficiaries.
Waterbodies certainly represent a big potential for extensive fishculture by Grass-Root fishfarmers. This potential must be investigated in few of them (5 to 10) during the preparatory period (through gill-nets harvest, stocking with fish and low-cost fertilisation) and extended in implementation period.
Local capacities on socio-economic matters and technical innovative systems should be involved in the third phase to as to provide adequate and local facilities to permit sustainability of fishculture in Western Kenya.
Most emphasis must be put on efficient methods for fishculture extension and development including the use of portable and adequate technical material (manual hand level, Secchi disk, pH box, aerators and so on…) and up-date data base collection for fishfarmers and ponds (GPS location could be really useful in this matter and it is recommanded to buy some of them for complementary project use).
Adequate material and inputs must be provided during preparatory phase to get all informations and technical package needed for reviewing output and activities to plan for implementation phase.
It is also recommanded that no complete cut off must be done during the next 6 months and a low-cost following up should be provided by actual extended TCP KEN 4551 to maintain good contacts with advanced fishfarmers groups (they are supposed to be more involved in the future fishculture developpement for the third phase
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