ibironkeeniola 
In its bid to promote aquaculture and improve nutrition among its citizens, the Lagos State Government in line with the Cage Culture Project has empowered 40 fish farmers with 40 cages of 1,000 juvenile catfish per cage.
The initiative, according to the State Commissioner for Agriculture, Prince Gbolahan Lawal is targeted at harnessing the potentials of the state’s abundant water resources, which account for about 22 percent of the state’s landmass.
The commissioner who made the remark while inspecting the facility described the Cage Culture System of Fish Farming as an eco-friendly method of increasing fish supply and saving foreign exchange spent on fish importation.
In his remarks, the cage culture system is a cheaper method of fish rearing which allows for fish to be reared in their natural habitat, revealing that over 40,000 fishes would be harvested at the Afowo fish farm, Badagry, at the end of the 4-month rearing period.
He added that the efforts of the state on aquaculture will drastically reduce unemployment and create a pathway for Lagosians to be gainfully employed.
“I am particularly happy and satisfy that the local community has shown her unflinching support for this initiative right from the installation stage. I am even more delighted that the cages were constructed with native material and the fish would be fed just like in concrete fish ponds,” he said.
Lawal noted that the project would be a continuous process with farming sites stationed across the riverine areas of the state including; Eti-Osa, Ikorodu, Ojo and Epe local government areas.
He, however, called on the fish farmers in the state to leverage on the Cage Culture initiative, restating the State Government’s willingness in providing support to farmers, in order to achieve the food security goal of the state.
Expressing gratitude to the state government on the initiative, one of the beneficiaries, Mrs. Ladega Grace lauded the commitment of the government in improving the livelihood of fish farmers and providing funds for the take-off of the fish cage and pen culture in Afowo, Badagry.
She further assured that the beneficiaries would key into the programme and make the most of it, in order to ameliorate fish production in the state.
SOURCE: AGRONIGERIA