Jacob’s Ladder Africa and the Government of Makueni County have embarked on a journey to ensure that youth are skilled in Aquaculture. The first cohort went through the training and successfully completed it.
Aquaculture, or fish farming is a growing industry in Kenya experiencing high demand for fish due to population growth. The Government also plans to increase production and recognition of the potential for this sector’s development.
The JLA team conducted home visits throughout the last week of February to the beginning of March to verify the youths earmarked as beneficiaries for the Cohort 1 of the Aquaculture Project. To ensure effectiveness of the cohort, baseline surveys were also carried out to capture the current status conditions and characteristics of the beneficiaries under consideration.
The selected cohort took on an immersive training that was conducted at Iviani Farm in Makueni County complemented by trainers from the Agriculture, Irrigation, Livestock, Fisheries and Cooperative Development department. Upon completion of the training, JLA Co-founder Marceline Obuya, the Chief Officer Livestock, Fisheries and Cooperative Development- Mr. Japtheth Kiminza and the County Agribusiness Youth Coordinator- Mr. Justus Mwakavi ushered the participants into the next phase of the project which entails setting of the aquaculture infrastructure and operationalizing the project.
This critical stage will involve pond construction and stocking of the fingerlings. While the operationalization is underway, the Development Programs teams will be conducting the next round of outreach and promotion exercises in Kibwezi and Kilome sub-counties.
We are excited at the transformation we are seeing in the 1st Cohort thus far; their enthusiasm and readiness to do whatever it takes to succeed in this project. We look forward to seeing rising stars who have beaten all the odds of life to emerge as confident agripreneurs in the flourishing oasis that is Makueni County. Stay tuned to see the transformative journeys unfold.
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