Raising fish in tanks is commonly known as "closed systems". Fish is raised in tanks which are supplied with clean water. Tanks can be made with concrete, fibre glass, metals of high density, poly-fibre supported by wooden or metallic frames. Tanks can be square, triangular, circular or oval.
Cage production
In cage fish farming , fish is raised in containers enclosed on all sides and bottom with mesh material that secures them inside while allowing free water exchange with the surrounding environment.
Currently, we have cage fish production in Kivu, Burera and Ruhondo lakes but can also be practiced in other appropriate lake bays. Before a farmer establishes cage production, he/she has to request the licence from competent authorities and seek advice from professionals from the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources..
Challenges of fish farming in Rwanda
Challenges encountered in fish farming in Rwanda are: seed, feed, technology as well as capital and market.
Seed: Rwanda's capacity to produce fingerlings is limited. Only one centre of Kigembe produces fingerlings for fish ponds and cannot serve all fish farmers to their satisfaction.
Feed: appropriate fish feeds are imported from the neighboring countries or small fish farmers try to formulate their own feeds using locally available products. Those local feeds are not floating and farmers use big quantities and record big losses.
Technology: technology in fish farming is still low. Professionals in fish farming are still few and work for government institutions. They try to train fish farmers but do not reach a big number.
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