• ZACOSO is happy that the government already advertised aquaculture funding.
• Farmers are already applying.
• The Cooperative is hoping that the money will be given to the farmers and not cadres.
Zambia Aquaculture Cooperative Society (ZACOSO) has disclosed that fish farmers across the country have started applying for the aquaculture seed fund which was recently advertised by government.
Speaking in an interview with Money FM News, Cooperative Board Chairperson Dr. Collins Kachaka said Aquaculture farmers are already filling in the application forms and sending them to Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries in order to access the fund.
Dr. Kachaka stated that it is the Cooperative’s hope that real farmers on the ground will be able to receive the fund and not political cadres as witnessed in the past.
“We are happy that the government already advertised aquaculture funding and at the moment our farmers the whole country are already applying. We are hoping that this time around, the money will be given to the farmers and not the cadres.”
“As farmers in Zambia we are waiting and applying, farmers are ready and they are filling in the forms and sending them to the Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries. It is our considered hope that this time, the real farmers on the ground will receive the fund so that we can grow this sector,” Dr. Kachaka stated.
Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock has set aside US$29 million for the implementation of the Aquaculture Seed Fund under the Zambia Aquaculture Enterprise Development Project (ZAEDP).
Government received financing from the African Development Bank (AfDB) towards the implementation of the project which is running for five years, from 2017 to 2022.
