A section of farmers in Kakamega county is set to benefit from free supply of fish fingerlings from the County Government in a bid to boost fish rearing.
The Aquaculture Business Development Programme(ABDP) has identified 581 farmers in the county who are already being supplied with 581 000 fingerlings with each getting 1000.
The ABDP is a programme jointly funded by the Government of Kenya and the International Fund for Agricultural Development(IFAD) meant to increase smallholder aquaculture development in 15 counties, Kakamega being one of them.
The fingerlings are being supplied by the large-scale fish farmer in Kakamega Laban Mwanzo through support from the county government.
Mwanzo owns Labed Cash Marine Enterprise Fish Farm in Malava
Labed Fish farm produces more than 2 million fingerlings per month with each fingerling going at Sh.2.50.
Monday, they supplied fingerlings to 51 farmers in Lurambi and 44 farmers in Navakholo.
The activity will continue throughout the week to reach out to all identified farmers across Kakamega’s 12 sub counties.
Mwanzo said Kakamega is the biggest beneficiary with more than 581 benefiting as compared to counties of Kisii, Siaya, Busia, Kisumu where he has also supplied the fingerlings to.
“These other counties have received less than 300 000 fingerlings compared to Kakamega,” he noted.
He says farmers who have benefited from the fingerlings will also get fish feeds to support them to cut costs of feeding.