TANAPA executes strategies to increase fish breeding in Lake Victoria

DAILY NEWS ReporterOctober 8, 2025

976

Assistant Conservation Commissioner of Rubondo Island National Park, Dr. Imani Kikoti.

GEITA: TANZANIA National Parks Authority (TANAPA) has put in place a special plan to increase fish breeding in Lake Victoria, which has reportedly been declining day by day due to illegal fishing activities.

TANAPA is executing this plan by increasing investment in protecting fish breeding conservation areas and providing education to residents living around the shores of Lake Victoria to safeguard these breeding grounds.

The Assistant Conservation Commissioner of Rubondo Island National Park, Dr. Imani Kikoti, made these remarks recently during a special visit with journalists in the Geita region at the park.

Kikoti explained that as part of implementing this plan, Rubondo Island National Park is ensuring the safety of fish breeding grounds and has designated breeding areas along 150 kilometers of shoreline.

“Up to now, the fishing sector within Lake Victoria has continued to decline, meaning that in many areas, fishermen are not catching enough fish as compared to previous times.

“We have worked hard to ensure that fish breeding grounds are protected, and once they are safe, we expect this to help increase fish breeding and thus the overall fish population,” he said.

ALSO READ: TANAPA to maintain global standards

He added that preliminary assessments show that Lake Victoria supports more than 4.5 million people, and urgent efforts are needed to save the fish breeding grounds, including providing education on fish farming.

Agricola Roman, the Chief Conservation Officer for Protection at Rubondo Island, stated that TANAPA has strengthened security through regular patrols in fish breeding areas.

Agricola noted that despite protection efforts, a major challenge remains with illegal fishing outside the protected areas, which undermines the efforts to increase fish populations.

“Conservation laws prohibit entry into protected areas without permission, but still, poachers enter, and some use illegal nets, which is dangerous for fish breeding grounds,” he said.