By Albert Allotey
Accra, Aug. 22, GNA – The People Building Institute (PBI) has held a two-day seminar on “Farming for the Future” with a call on government to support young entrepreneurs to venture into scientific aquaculture to increase fish production.
The seminar was on the theme: “Unlocking opportunities in Crop Farming and Aquaculture for SMEs and Start-ups.”
Dr Shadrack Kwadwo Amponsah, Senior Research Scientist of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research – Crops Research Institute, Kumasi who made the call said Ghana was facing fish production deficit of 60 per cent.
He said Ghana’s declining fish supply from capture fisheries was insufficient to provide cheap protein for the growing population and that natural water bodies faced several issues, ranging from pollution caused by mining to low water levels that jeopardized fisheries.
He stated that the Food and Agriculture Organisation had cited that worldwide fishery output needed increase by at least 50 per cent to counter forecasted dietary protein shortages by 2030.
“With pandemic such as COVID-19 and others on the horizon, it is critical to start looking within and leveraging the appropriate technology to transform the country’s aquaculture sector,” he said.
He stated that the existing aquaculture systems in Ghana were floating cages, earthen ponds and concrete tanks; and the majority of farmed Tilapia comes from cage culture systems, with the rest coming from ponds.
He said: “Ghana’s economy is worsening with a looming food scarcity; and the cedi is losing value every minute and savings is useless;” adding; “Let’s take up this great opportunity in aquaculture space and change the narrative. It is possible.”
Dr Etornam Kassah, a Fisheries Scientist and the guest speaker urged young entrepreneurs to take advantage of the opportunities in the fish farming value chain for additional benefits in their businesses.
Mr Cephas Asare, the Board Chairman of the PBI in a welcoming address said the seminar was aimed at changing the narrative of the back-breaking practices of tilling the land for farming, which had scared the youth from venturing into agriculture.
He noted that farming was the future of the African continent, which he said had 60 per cent of arable lands in the world and that by 2050 the population of Africa was projected to be around 2.3 billion people.
“Majority of the people are going to be the teeming youth and this population is going to need food that we get through crop farming, aquaculture and other forms of livestock rearing,” he stated.
Mr Asare said: “We as custodians of agriculture knowledge need to share that knowledge and pass it right to the younger generations; to the youth that are going to bear the torch of Africa into the future.”
The PBI is a dynamic ecosystem that fosters business ideas, enhances existing ventures, and maximizes untapped potential and through their deliberate and consistent activities impart knowledge, facilitates networking, provide coaching, and guides individuals in building successful businesses and leaving lasting legacies.
GNA