Online Reporter
Theseus Mauruki Shambare in MASVINGO
THE European union has hailed Zimbabwe’s transformation of aquaculture under a €48 million regional development initiative, with US$3.5 million invested locally to support tilapia production infrastructure, distribution hubs and hatchery management.
The investment is part of the Fisheries for African, Caribbean and Pacific countries (FISH4ACP) programme, implemented across 12 countries with support from the EU and German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
The EU delegation is currently assessing infrastructure and other interventions supported through the programme, including the Maponga Fingerling Hub at Maponga Farm in Masvingo Province.
Launched in December 2024, the hub was established to address shortages of quality fish seed after an analysis found that about 80 percent of local tilapia fingerlings were inbred or sourced from unreliable water bodies.
The facility is already supplying about 450 farmers with quality fingerlings closer to their production areas and is targeting expansion towards one million fingerlings.
Representing the EU Head of Delegation to Zimbabwe, Ms Anna Cichocka, Engineer Martin Andersen said the hub demonstrated how the Government of Zimbabwe and FAO were putting the funding to good use, while showing the practical impact of development investment.
“It is quite impressive to see how some of the investment coming from FISH4ACP has actually transformed, in the last couple of years, into this kind of hub we are standing in here,” Andersen said in Mashava, Masvingo on Monday.
Over a production season, the facility has the capacity to distribute between two million and 2.5 million fingerlings to small-scale farmers.
Picture: Theseus Mauruki Shambare
Currently, it is distributing more than 700 000 fingerlings, with a target of reaching one million this season as it works towards full production capacity.
Fingerlings are nurtured from early stages to between five and 20 grammes before distribution, improving survival rates among farmers to between 80 and 90 percent.
Andersen said bringing inputs and services closer to farmers was among the key benefits.
“What is particularly encouraging about Maponga Fish Hub is that it is bringing critical inputs and services closer to farmers,” he said.
FAO Assistant Representative (Programmes) Ms Tendai Munyokoveri said aquaculture was becoming increasingly important as communities faced climate shocks.
“With communities across Zimbabwe increasingly exposed to droughts, erratic rainfall patterns, and extreme weather events, aquaculture provides communities with an alternative source of income when crop production is affected by drought and changing climatic conditions,” she said.
Director for Livestock and Fisheries Production Department Mr Milton Makumbe said Masvingo now had 5 075 fishponds, up from 4 647 during the 2023/24 season.
Under the Presidential Community Fisheries Scheme, 141 community fishponds in Masvingo have been stocked with more than seven million fingerlings, while 120 500 fingerlings have also been introduced into dams.
Makumbe said decentralised fingerling production was critical because farmers had traditionally faced high costs and losses transporting fish seed over long distances.
“By bringing fingerlings closer to farming communities, these hubs have improved accessibility, reduced costs and enhanced stocking success rates,” he said.
Beyond producing fingerlings, Maponga has developed into a demonstration and farmer training centre, while the Mashava Fisheries Cluster helps farmers access inputs, technical support and markets.
Mr Makumbe said Government was targeting a US$1 billion fisheries and aquaculture industry, with Zimbabwe seeking to increase fish production and establish itself as a regional producer of tilapia.
