ACSE Project Boosts Tilapia Production Improving Community Access to Fisheries

Tagabe Fresh Water Aquaculture Center has boosted tilapia production in the thousands through the support of the EU-GIZ Adapting to Climate Change and Sustainable Energy (ACSE) project. The 2-year project, beginning in October 2016, aims to supply communities with good breeds of tilapia fingerlings for both food security and income generating purposes.

SPC had funded 16 tilapia tanks at the Tagabe Freshwater Aquaculture Center and 10 tilapia tanks in Luganville, each tank containing more than 250 fingerlings. At this stage, the tilapia fingerlings are given to communities who wish to rear them until they reach market size, around 22-25 centimetres and can be sold.

The community at Mangaliliu, North Efate is one among two other identified project sites that has already seen the positive outcomes that this project brings to their community.

 “This project helps communities in terms of hatchery. We are determined to breed strong breeds for better market production for communities,” said Noel Moli, ACSE hatchery technician involved in the project for the past four years.

Staff at the Tagable Fresh Water Aquaculture Center work tirelessly to ensure the tilapias are fed and water temperatures are maintained between 27 – 31 degrees Celsius.

Noel Moli adds, “maintaining the water temperatures is a considerable challenge due to Vanuatu’s unstable weather conditions.”  

Tilapias, unlike other species, are easy-to-rear and are resistant to increasing temperatures posed by climate change. The tilapia are fed a combination of cracker mill, copra mill, and meat mill in a mesh form.

The Tagabe Freshwater Aquaculture Center is working towards being the main breeding station to supply tilapias to the whole of Vanuatu and other pacific countries. It also has plans to extend their operations to include different fish breeds.

For more information, contact Osborne Melenamu through the Department of Energy on 33425 or 25201 or VOIP 3900.

By Energy Department, Ministry of Climate Change