Botswana ramps up interest in ‘climate smart’ aquaponics

With the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organisation predicting that 62% of all global fish will be produced through aquaculture, Botswana is among the countries which are set to ramp up fish farming as it seeks to feed the population and increase food security.

Aquaculture is breeding, raising and harvesting fish, shellfish, and aquatic plants and it is the fastest growing food production system in the world. Therefore, aquaponics, an avenue that Botswana aims to explore, combines aquaculture with hydroponics. The latter is the technique of growing plants using a water-based nutrient solution rather than soil.

Recently, it was revealed that Botswana and The Bahamas will start implementing their partnership with emphasis on aquaponics where fish and crops are raised together in a practical, productive and ecologically balanced system. Aquaponics is a sustainable method of raising both fish and vegetables. Botswana saw this as an unmissable opportunity to step up aquaculture production and ensure that the country takes a more responsible stance on food security.

The Bahamas aquaponics expertise

During a public lecture at Botswana University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (BUAN) last week, the president of the Bahamas Agriculture and Marine Science Institute, Dr Raveenia Hanna, said aquaponics enables the breeding of fish and the cultivation of crops in a controlled environment of a greenhouse.

“It recycles both water and nutrients in a closed loop ecosystem and reduces soil stress and fatigue,” she outlined. Hanna added that with the staggering statistics, which shows that fish farms will produce nearly two thirds of global food fish supply by 2030, it is important to find alternatives.

She said one is able to grow their fish and vegetation in a recycled ecosystem through the aquaponics system. Hanna also disclosed that in their campus back in The Bahamas, they have an 800 acres land where they train their students and the community on aquaponics. “Right now we are growing tilapia. Coming on stream we are going to have shrimp as well as crawfish. This is a large commercial scale so we also teach our students how to do small scale models. As for the aquaponics degree, they will have to actually create a mini model as part of their assessment,” she revealed.

In terms of the importance of aquaponics and how it is connected to climate change, Hanna pointed out that the aquaponics system saves 30% water use. “It’s a wonderful ecosystem and it works well where there is drought and water shortage as well as the places where the soil might have already been fatigued,” she emphasised.

Hanna added that it is a very good alternative because it is a soilless environment. She said in The Bhamas they have introduced new varieties like the Dov Romaine lettuce in their market because it thrives even better in hotter climates. “As temperatures increase, it is actually able to retain its wetness and colouration because it is tip burn tolerant. This particular variety, you can actually extend its growth cycle so that you can have lettuce year round,” she said.

She said they have trained local farmers and donated seeds. Hanna further said they are developing a national crop calendar because it is important that they have continuous supplies of food. She said they import a lot of food and specifically worth $1 billion in a country with 400 000 people.

Masisi confident on aquaponics

Asked by the media about Botswana’s prospects for aquaponics, President Mokgweetsi Masisi recently said he was extremely confident about it otherwise Botswana would not have done it. “The science and experience is there.

There is willingthose ness by who have done it and they are doing it better than we are,” he said. Masisi said The Bahamas will share the knowledge with them and hold hands all the way.

Aquaculture in Botswana

The farming of aquatic organisms in Botswana includes fish, molluscs, crustaceans and aquatic plants. Fisheries used to be a unit under the Division of Animal Production in the Department of Animal Health and Production.

The unit was transferred fully with its functions and staff to Ministry of Environment, Wildlife and Tourism (MEWT) as a standalone division in 2003. While at the MEWT there was a proposal in 2013 for the function of Aquaculture to be moved back to Ministry of Agriculture as a result of restructuring.

On October 2017, Aquaculture function and some former fisheries staff were transferred to Ministry Of Agriculture Development and Food Security as a standalone division called Aquaculture Division. Capture fishery remained at the Wildlife Department. The overall objective of the Division of Aquaculture was to promote the development of a viable and sustainable aquaculture industry as a way of economic diversification in Botswana.

According to the fisheries booklet, The Development of Aquaculture in Botswana, the aquaculture industry was meant to directly contribute to the upliftment of the livelihoods of Batswana and ultimately to food and nutrition security and poverty eradication.

As a way of promoting aquaculture production, the Division is said to be producing fingerlings for supply to aspiring fish farmers. In the various dams across the country, government has reportedly seen a need for assessment of fish stocks in the dams in order to determine their potential for fish utilisation in terms of aquaculture. Also the division has indicated that for a fish species to become a good candidate aquaculture species, it has to be researched upon extensively and also genetically improved over time. It is said that the current indigenous species in Botswana have not yet been improved so they cannot be good performers in aquaculture hence the need for more research.

Hydroponics

Because of Botswana’s semi arid climate, farmers have at times been advised to consider implementing hydroponics since it is efficient in water usage. Hydroponic farming has the potential to provide fresh, local food for areas with extreme droughts and low soil quality.

Crops grown indoors and hydroponically can be grown anywhere on earth at any time of the year, regardless of weather conditions, availability of cultivable land, or soil quality.

For small, start-up farmers, entering into the hydroponic farming world can come with high costs. The challenge for farmers is that the method is not easy to implement because it is highly technical and expensive, and one needs to have special equipment and expertise to set it up. Botswana and The Bahamas’ joint venture on aquaponics where hydroponics is combined with aquaculture, could allow farmers to supply enough food in a sustainable fashion and allow large tracts of land to revert to the natural landscape restoring ecosystem functions and services.

The food import state

Statistics Botswana shows that that Botswana’s total imports were valued at P6, 421.5 million during the month of December 2023 and in this amount, food imports contributed 15.8%. Beverages, spirits and vinegar and cereals accounted for 22.6% and 14.4% of food imports respectively. Preparations of vegetables, fruit, nuts or other parts of plants followed with 8.9%.

Late last year Botswana announced that it would extend and expand restrictions on imports of some fresh produce as it tries to become self-sufficient in food and cut its import bill.

The veggie ban, which at some point had South Africa seeking audience with Botswana, was due to expire at the end of December 2023 but it will now run until the end of 2025. With the ban, Botswana has been pushing the need to make up for their huge vegetable, fruit import bill and mature to export to other countries.