Success for Musina's aquatic farmer

The high demand for fresh fish has forced an emerging, self-taught entrepreneur to try his luck at an unusual type of entrepreneurship, namely aquatic farming. Six months down the line, his hard work and perseverance are paying off.

This is the encouraging story of Mr Rekkie Moyo of Musina, a man who was not afraid to take a risk, despite the high temperatures of his border town.

“I have a lot of Indian friends who do not prefer any meat but fish. Most of the time, they kept complaining that they wanted fresh fish straight from the water. They indicated that it was difficult to get fresh fish here and they needed someone who could supply them with fresh fish locally. After careful thought, I decided to take a chance and venture into aquatic farming, because the market was already guaranteed.”

Moyo, a well-known local reggae artist, started by constructing his pond without telling his prospective customers. “As a seasoned craftsman, I built the pond from scratch. It only took two weeks for me to finish it and I filled it with water. Some of my friends thought I was out of my mind, but I continued my work because I knew what I was doing.”

He said he started off by buying 200 tilapia fish from an aquatic farmer in Polokwane, who also lectured him on how to take good care of the fish. “The fish were very small when I acquired them, but I fed them with floating-pellet fish food, and they grew so fast.

“Interestingly, the fish multiplied to approximately 2 000 within the space of six months. I had to sell them in bulk, so that the remaining ones can have the freedom of movement in the pond.”

Moyo said he was planning to build another big pond at his farm on the outskirts of Campbell township. “This is a very good business and I encourage my colleagues to try it. The market is readily available and all you must do is to make sure that you take good care of the fish. I am prepared to share my knowledge with other prospective aquatic framers, so that we can get into this business in large numbers,” he concluded.

News in brief - Date: 10 February 2019

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