2009 – 2026: Bayelsa’s 17-year journey to deepen IGR through fish farming

Detailed summary

Sylva’s fisheries and aquaculture strategy was centered on commercial fish farming, state-backed agribusiness companies, and industrial…

When the present efforts by the Government of Bayelsa State to tap into the enormous opportunities abounding in the Blue Economy by harnessing the available resources, it does not tell the whole story, particularly in the area of aquaculture.

Without a doubt, the actual journey started in 2009 when Timipre Sylva, the then governor, mooted the idea of generating N100 million from the sale of 50,000 pieces of table fish at the price of N2,000 each.

Sylva’s fisheries and aquaculture strategy was centered on commercial fish farming, state-backed agribusiness companies, and industrial fishing trawlers to diversify the state away from oil, generate Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), and create jobs.

He established the Niger Delta Seafoods Company Limited to drive revenue generation, employment, and poverty reduction by tapping into Bayelsa’s seafood resources.

In July 2010, his administration sought legislative approval to guarantee a ₦4.0 billion commercial bank loan for the company, which was part of a broader ₦15.4 billion agricultural guarantee package, which was to be repaid directly from the enterprise’s cash flow.

He also acquired two deep-sea fishing trawlers, MV Patience Jonathan and MV Margaret Alamieyeseigha, for the state, though they were left moored at the Ogbia Town Jetty after two fishing expeditions.

With Diekivie Ikiogha, as the commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources, some earthen ponds were dug, as part of a pilot programme, at the Bayelsa Oil Palm Estate and stocked, but the yield was not encouraging. However, his efforts were enough to convince the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources to commend his commercial fish farming blueprint, which projected an annual output of 124,062 metric tonnes of fish with an estimated N50 billion in profit revenue once fully developed.

Bayelsa State was, therefore, cleared to access a federal agricultural credit facility alongside its rice production programme.

Sylva was unable to continue in…

Opening of the article, excerpted from BusinessDay. To read the rest, open the article on the publisher's site.