The study evaluated aquaculture biosecurity compliance and adoption rates by investigating 61 fish farms in Rumphi and Zomba districts. Primary data were collected from small-scale pond-based fish farmers through face-to-face interviews using a semi-structured questionnaire. Results revealed poor compliance with biosecurity measures, with an overall average rate of 48.5%. Similarly, the adoption rate of biosecurity measures was unsatisfactory, with an overall average rate of 43%. The study categorized the audited farms based on their compliance levels, with 62.3% falling into the poor compliance category, 36.07% in the intermediate category, and only 1.64% in the good compliance category with aquaculture biosecurity measures. The Mann-Whitney U test revealed significant differences (p=0.026<0.05) in aquaculture biosecurity compliance between the two studied districts, Rumphi and Zomba. Rumphi had an intermediate average compliance rate of 52.42%, while Zomba had a poor average compliance rate of 44.44%. It was noted that many fish farmers in the studied districts react to disease outbreaks instead of taking proactive measures, which may lead to suboptimal disease control. The study highlighted several biosecurity measures posing a significant risk, including unreliable source and movement of fingerlings, sharing of materials such as harvesting nets, lack of quarantine for new fish stocks, improper disposal of dead fish, inappropriate disposal of pond effluent, and the movement of transport vehicles and people on and off the farms. To prevent the spread of diseases and protect fish health, fish farmers in Malawi need to strengthen biosecurity measures through collaboration with government agencies and stakeholders.
Keywords; Fish disease, fish health, biosecurity, compliance rate, fish farming