Communities around the crater lakes in Kabarole district have received 30 fish cages through Operation Wealth Creation and the NAADs secretariat under the AGRILED implementation program phase 1.
Grace Kazigati, the NAADs coordinator of Kabarole district, says that cages are intended to enable communities near creator lakes to engage in fish farming with an aim of boosting their household incomes.
Kazigati says the initiative is a pilot project that has been rolled in Ruteete, Kichwamba and Kasenda sub-counties, with each sub-county receiving 10 fish cages. She says that they intend to conduct training for the farmers on fish farming.
Salvatore Abigaba, the Kabarole District Production Officer has implored the fish farming communities to secure the cages if they are to benefit from the project. He is optimistic that the project will help communities boost their incomes since there is a ready market for fish in the country and the world at large.
Brian James Baguma, Kabarole District Fisheries Officer has commended the government for the initiative, saying as a district they are determined to provide support to the fish farmers.
Noah Atalyeb, the head of Rwihamba parish fish farmers, says that they are happy that the government has offered them an opportunity to benefit from the program. He explains that they initially had poor quality fish species, which are very small in size that will be replaced by the new fish species from the government that can fetch a better price.
Michael Mwesige, a resident of Rwaihamba parish in Ruteete Sub County, says the new project will not only boost their income levels but it will also provide job opportunities to the youth. He, however, says that the cages are few compared to the number of registered associations in the sub-counties and wants the government to send more.
the Agriculture local economic development program, AGRI-LED is one of The Presidential Initiatives for Zonal Industrial Parks for Skills Development, Value Addition and Wealth creation. This initiative was born out of the regional tours undertaken by the President in May 2019 with the focus on skills development and capacity building in mainly commercial Agriculture, Manufacturing, ICT and services.
-URN
