Omoro farmers find treasure in fish farming

OMORO | Omoro District, once ravaged by the Lord’s Resistance Army insurgency, has been striving to rebuild its economy and empower communities through initiatives such as fish farming.

However, the lack of sufficient resources and support infrastructure presents significant hurdles, as explained by the local leaders.

The district authorities say the obstacles could hinder the full potential of fish farming as a sustainable livelihood option for the area, once ravaged by the Lord’s Resistance Army war.

Omoro District fisheries officer Santo Opito notes that the challenge is compounded by a shortage of extension workers to provide technical assistance and training to farmers.

“The major challenge is the access to farm inputs for fish farmers, including the quality fish fingerlings and feeds. It is a barrier for fish farmers here because you have to access it from the central region,” Opito told Nile Post.

The chairperson of Kica-ber Fish Farmers Group Janet Auma says with the lack of mechanised machines for constructing fish ponds, locals are currently using hand tools.

“We dug the fishponds using our hands as members, shortly after being trained by a team from the Ministry of Water and Environment. We managed to construct the fish pond as a group,” says Auma.

Currently, available data in the district indicate there are more than 1000 fish ponds spread across the district, relying solely on the local market.

The District Chairperson, Douglas Peter Okello, said plans are underway to establish at least two Aquaculture parks in Tochi and Omoro Counties to enhance fish farming in the district.

“We are bordered by Gulu City and there is a huge potential for fish. The establishment of these fish ponds in the district was community-led and that is why we are now proposing an establishment of aquaculture parks in the two counties of Tochi and Omoro,” says Okello.