Madam Joyce Soronzo Salia, the 2023 Bono Regional Overall Best Fish Farmer, has called on the government to construct dams and wells to sustain fish farming in the country.
She said erratic rains due to climate change impacts were affecting fish farming, slowing down production, saying with dams and dugout wells farmers could produce more and sustain their economic livelihood.
Speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) at Yawhima in the Sunyani Municipality, Madam Salia, the owner of Farm Life, a fish farming business said the nation’s aqua-culture sector was becoming unattractive and challenging due to the impacts of climate change.
She spoke to the GNA on the implementation of the Post COVID-19 Skills Development and Productivity Enhancement Project (PSDPEP).
The GNA agency a beneficiary and implementer of the government’s PSDPEP project seeks to build health-related skills in higher education, restore livelihoods, strengthen communication and create jobs among the youth and women in the country.
Under the implementation of the African Development Bank (AfDB) $30 million project, $4 million is expected to be given to Small and Medium Enterprises as loans at a reduced rate to enable them to withstand the shock of the pandemic.
Madam Salia said with the dams and dugout wells, the fish farming sector could thrive, produce more to meet growing demand of consumers and create more jobs for the teeming unemployed youth too.
She noted that many of the fish farmers were under-resourced and thereby making it difficult for them to stay in business, saying, “my farm has been significantly affected by climate change impacts.
“As we speak now, all my ponds have dried up and I don’t have any fish because of the erratic rains in 2024.
She expressed the fear that many fish farmers would be out of business if the government failed to intervene.
If that happens it is going to affect national fish productivity and supply and thereby contribute to hunger.
“Fishing is our livelihood and without a reliable water source, we will be out of business”, she stated, saying with government support, more fish farmers could produce more for the local market.
Mad Salia called on the government to prioritise water infrastructure for aquaculture to build resilience and sustain farmers in business.
GNA
Edited by Dennis Peprah/Benjamin Mensah