Improving household tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus) aquaculture through participatory action research

Abstract

Land based aquaculture has the potential to mitigate future shortfalls of food fish supply in Solomon Islands. However, aquaculture is relatively new in the Pacific and such potential is hampered by a lack of aquaculture knowledge and practice within local cultures. A participatory action research approach was used to conduct on-farm trials with farmers in Solomon Islands to develop relevant and improved ways of farming and maximising productivity of the resident exotic tilapia Oreochromis mossambicus. During the 34month period when the research was undertaken improvements were evident, through increased farmer participation and improved knowledge of farmers on pond design and fish husbandry techniques. One of the contributing factors to improved farmer understanding was the production of knowledge products which were co-developed with and based on the farmers' local context. Productivity of a typical 20–38m2 pond ranged from 726 to 1819kgha−1year−1. Because 80% of this production was consumed by households, such ponds, producing easily harvestable small tilapia, have a role in supplementing household diets and contributing to improved nutrition at the subsistence level. While pond system productivity reached levels equivalent to low input tilapia ponds in other regions, the resident tilapia in Solomon Islands has limited opportunity for more than low level commercial enterprises. Established ponds are included in the daily livelihood tasks of both men and women and explicitly gender equitable approaches to partnerships with pond farmers provide opportunities to further increase benefits to households. A participatory action research approach, and the principles embodied therein, is recommended for further development of household aquaculture enterprises, regardless of species, in Solomon Islands. Statement of relevanceWe feel that our paper makes significant and novel advance to the field of aquaculture by:(1)Presenting results of a research that shows the importance and potential role of aquaculture in mitigating food and nutrition security in locations where it is increasingly difficult to access fish based protein sources, even in a South Pacific location perceived to contain an abundance of fish.(2)Participatory Action Research (PAR) has been employed in agriculture and aquaculture in Asia and Africa in the last 20years. We report in here the use of the PAR method within the Pacific Islands context in conducting research and developing aquaculture in a location where there is very little history of aquaculture within the local culture.