The Technologies for African Agricultural transformation (TAAT Phase I) program funded by African Development Bank through the Aquaculture Compact led by WorldFish deployed aquaculture technologies to increase productivity in 12 African countries: Benin, Burundi, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, DR Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Tanzania, Togo and Zambia. The program uses the monitoring and evaluation and learning (MEL) system to ensure continued progress towards set goal and develop a culture of learning and sharing within the program.
The TAAT program collaborated with the Aquaculture Compact to conduct an outcome level study to determine the effects of project interventions on performance of actors and improvement of livelihoods of the people who benefited directly and indirectly from TAAT investment. Outcomes case study used a triangulation of mixed methods including Interviews, Focus Group Discussions (FGD), and Observations through ground truthing field visit to collect data.
Results of the outcome case study show that Aquaculture Compact leveraged on Zambia Aquaculture Enterprise Development Project (ZAEDP), a project funded by both GRZ and AfDB to scale up aquaculture technologies deployed. These are mass production of mono sex tilapia fingerlings in hapa, production of hybrid Clarias species, fish feed and feeding management; and value addition (solar tent, smoking kiln technology and product development). The fish breeders and fish processors benefited from practical trainings in Abbassa, Egypt and Elmina, Ghana respectively. Fish hatcheries were supported with improved brood stock for mass production of tilapia mono sex fingerlings supplied to fish farmers. Several In-Country trainings were organized, stakeholders along the value chain were identified and sensitized.
In terms of outcome, many tilapia breeders have higher survival rate recorded for fingerlings produced. Growth rate of table-size tilapia has increased from 250g to 350g after 6 months culture period. Production of local feed has stimulated more jobs to be created along the value chain. Value addition of fish by solar tent dryer and smoking kilns have produced 11 new fish products, thereby increasing profit margins of fish farmers and processors. A total of 225 beneficiaries have been trained comprising of 101 women trained and 124 men. Income increased by 30% and 8,000 jobs have been created along the Aquaculture Value Chain. Number of people trained are 336 and final beneficiaries effectively using the technologies are 2,898. Total of aquaculture value chain actors as beneficiaries reached are 10,177. The fish breeders trained have produced 27,934,646 fingerlings under the TAAT programme in Zambia.
Despite the challenges encountered, beneficiaries reported several crucial lessons that can be carried forward to beneficiaries of future projects.