KWIHAZA
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Rwanda
In line
with the National Strategy for Transformation 2 (NST2, 2024-2029 ), Rwanda
has drawn up a National Aquaculture Strategy for Rwanda (NASR) that contributes
towards achieving better standards of living and improved nutrition conditions
for the population of 14M (in 2023), which increasing at over 2.3% per year.
To support this Strategy to realise the unmet potential for pond-based
aquaculture, the Belgian development agency, Enabel, Government of Luxembourg
through LuxDev, and the European Union have funded the Kwihaza (Transformation
Towards Sustainable Food Systems) project to be implemented from 2023 to 2026.
In order to increase the production of fish in Rwanda, Kwihaza project
introduced a Master Training Program on Best Aquaculture Practices aiming at
empowering smallholder farmers especially youth and women with hands-on and
practical skills. At first glance, the project started with 19 Model
Farms, each having three facilitators that were trained and coached. In the
past three months of ToTs, the 57 facilitators extended the
training to other 1,140 pond farmers. This capacity
development will be delivered in a period of 15 months by ThinkAqua-a UK-based
NGO specialising in sustainable aquaculture value chain development in
partnership with Rwanda Agriculture Board (RAB) and RARICO, a cooperative
tasked of extension service delivery in this project.
Impressive fish growth rate: Success story
On 22nd August, 2024, during the joint monitoring by Enabel, Rwanda Agriculture
Board, RARICO and THINKAQUA, the team noticed a good project progress in terms
of fish growth rate. Fish in the KIUM, a 28-member cooperative, selected
as model pond farm located in Nyamagabe district, Southern Province of Rwanda
have surged from 1g to 20g average in just 2.5 months. Top growers known as to
have a very high growth rate, weighing 45g and above, are now graded and transferred
to separate grow-out ponds.
In the past 3 months, this cooperative, among others, have received training
and coaching sessions about Best Aquaculture Practices, namely pond
preparation, fish stocking, fish feeding and stock management.
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