Aquaculture is the husbandry of aquatic food organisms. The need arose from the decrease in supply from ocean fisheries as a result of over-fishing and pollution. One of the ways to bridge the gap between the reduced fish supply and increased world food fish demand is through aquaculture. Unlike Asia, Africa has little aquaculture tradition and has been affected by a number of external problems that have prevented proper management and development despite investment.
In Nigeria, tilapia culture production is predominantly an extensive land-based (earthen ponds) system practiced at subsistence levels (Fagbenro,2002) while commercial tilapia culture is yet to become popular and widespread (Afolabi et al.,2000). Its current yield is 14,388 tonnes/year (Fagbenro & Adebayo,2005). With an estimated one million hectares of coastal zone, which offer considerable potential for commercial aquaculture, the activity is a developing venture.
In Nigeria, tilapia culture production is predominantly an extensive land-based (earthen ponds) system practiced at subsistence levels (Fagbenro,2002) while commercial tilapia culture is yet to become popular and widespread (Afolabi et al.,2000). Its current yield is 14,388 tonnes/year (Fagbenro & Adebayo,2005). With an estimated one million hectares of coastal zone, which offer considerable potential for commercial aquaculture, the activity is a developing venture.