By Modupe Gbadeyanka
** Seek Special Permit to Move During Lockdown
Members of the Catfish and Allied Fish Farmers Association of Nigeria (CAFFAN) have urged federal government to grant them special movement permit for the transportation of fish and its products from various fish farms to areas of need within the country.
National President of CAFFAN, Mr Rotimi Oloye, said this special permit is necessary to curb losses in the fish farming value chain during the lockdown declared by government in Lagos, Ogun and Abuja.
Mr Oloye argued that the continuous restriction on the movement of fish farmers would eventually affect players in the fish value chain.
“The inability of fish farmers to have access to their farms would have a multiplier effect across the fish value chain.
“Without access to our farms, we won’t be able to purchase fish fingerlings. We won’t also be able to purchase fish feeds, which will have an impact on their sales and the business.
“Those whom we sell fish to will also not be able to purchase this very important source of protein and nutrient. It could potentially lead to loss of employment while people who have shown interest in investing in the fish farming may lose interest,” head of the fish farmers in Nigeria said.
Though Mr Oloye commended government for the steps taken to tackle the deadly virus in the country, he stressed that the services provided by his members are very essential to the well-being of residents of the country.
He said the farmers mostly affected by this cessation of movement were those close to border towns as they are denied passage by security operatives on the roads.
According to him, “This is adding to cost of production that is already on the high side due to cost of exchange of naira to dollar used in importing more than 70 percent of our inputs like fish meal, hormones and other additives like lysine, methionine.
“This situation can make farmers to abandon farming, thereby leading to threats of food insecurity. As everyone is well aware, unless properly processed and preserved, fish has a very short shelf-life value.”
Mr Oloye advised the federal government to include processed homegrown catfish to the palliatives being shared to people, emphasising that fish and fishery products were nutritional foods because they contained adequate nutrients necessary to boost human body cells and immune system.
