What could prompt a medical doctor to venture into fisheries business? The poser could sound incredible but the answer was provided last week during the aquaculture (fisheries) training organised for women in the North-Central geo-political zone at the National Centre for Agricultural Mechanization (NCAM) in Ilorin, Kwara State, Daily Trust reports

No fewer than 10 women from each of the states of the zone were selected to participate in the training programme organised by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in collaboration with the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and consultants on fish farming. It was a programme targeted at empowering the beneficiaries to attain self-sufficiency and sustainability thereby enabling them to add value to the economy.

According to the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Mrs. Ibukun Abimbola Odusote, the training was in sync with the present administration’s efforts at addressing the problem of lack of empowerment for women who are a pillar of support for the family, which as you all know, has not only become a major threat to the quality of life, but also adversely affects our daily activities and insecurity of lives and properties.

The permanent secretary whose address was read by the Executive Director, NCAM, Engr. Ike Azogu, said, “It has become necessary to set up a deliberate drive, for the training and empowerment of our women nationwide on different agricultural enterprises along the value chains. This group of trainees will essentially function on their own rights as organized aquaculturists that can have links with their counterparts all over the world in terms of marketing and sharing of ideas.”

She explained that at the end of the training, each trainee would be supported with a token of fish feed and juveniles to start business of fisheries that will enable them to thrive on the enterprise of aquaculture, adding, “let me assure you that the ministry is ready to support and encourage trainees to form cooperative groups especially those who show a high level of commitment and seriousness and also more importantly, putting what they learned into practice. They will eventually be assisted to access credit from the Bank of Agriculture for production and Bank of Industry for processing and packaging in order to expand their businesses,”

The training which has 65 per cent practical session and only 35 per cent theory, Odusote further noted, would prepare the trainees to grasp the rudiments of fish production, processing and packaging in order to create wealth and enhance food security in our various households in particular and the country at large. She urged the trainees to be committed and build consensus around all relevant areas of aquaculture to see that the targets for fish production and processing in Nigeria are achieved.

The Kwara State Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Mr. Bode Olayemi said the training was particularly imperative to enable Nigeria fill the huge supply gap of fish in the country, disclosing that Nigeria currently imports at least two million tons of fish annually to meet its fish demand of about 2.7 million.

According to him, despite the increasing fish demand estimated at 2.7 million metric tons per annum, the local production capacity is about 700, 000 metric tons, thereby requiring the importation of 2 million tons to augment the shortfall.

Olayemi, represented by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Elder Gabriel Jimoh said, “There is therefore a great need for strategic investment in fish farming because this is the major way that fisheries development in Nigeria can be moved to new heights. Unless concrete efforts are made to massively mobilize the populace for increased fish production, the supply gap will continue to widen.”

On the part of the state government, the commissioner added that it had made a lot of effort in increasing fish production through execution of fisheries development policies, saying, “in the recent past, the government distributed fish inputs to fishermen and fish farmers in the state on annual basis at 50% subsidy, and organised annual sensitization training workshops for fish farmers as well as one year training of 100 unemployed youths in fish farming at the Government Fish Farm, Ilorin from 2008 to date.”

The programme, Olayemi disclosed, had increased fish production in the state from 30, 000 metric tons per annum in 2003 to 120,000 metric tons per annum in 2012, adding, “the programmes have increased fish production, income generation, job creation as well as ensured food security in the state.”

From the practitioner’s perspective at the training programme, was the story of a medical doctor who, despite the nature of the job - the usual tight schedule - still engages in fisheries by setting aside a space at her backyard to practice aquaculture.

Dr.  Hannah Olawumi who was invited to the training said though she is a medical doctor, she finds fish farming very interesting, saying the business is very lucrative because more people now eat fish than meat since the cholesterol in fish is very minimal.

Speaking with Daily Trust shortly after the opening of the programme, she said, “Fish farming is something that is very convenient to do. For example, I am a medical doctor but I am still able to cope with the farm. Even though it is capital intensive, it is a very lucrative business especially when you are able to get good market.”

Olawunmi appealed to the government to assist fish farmers with inputs as well as open up market for fish, adding that adequate technical know-how for fish farmers would boost the business.

On his part, the Kwara State Director, Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Mr. Buhari Adebisi explained that the programme was being funded by the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) for the achievement of goals one and two.