Wantoat farmers need access to Lae fish markets

By SUZIE GEBO of NARI

Despite the mountainous geography of the area, smallholder farmers in the Wantoat local level government of Markham in Morobe have successfully constructed fish ponds and are producing fish of exceptional sizes.

A fish pond at Wantoat

 The environment is ideal for inland pond fish farming.

Currently there are about 30 established fish farmers and the interest in fish farming is growing and more people are starting to engage in this activity.

The pond sizes range from as small as 5m x 5m to as large as 11m x 45m and are stocked with carp and GIFT (genetically improved farmed tilapia) that number from a few hundred to over 2,000.   

Recently, inland aquaculture researchers of National Agriculture Research Institute’s (NARI) livestock project from Labu near Lae visited Wantoat, a remote part of the Markham district, upon request by smallholder fish farmers in the area. 

Wantoat fish farmers and NARI researcher Suzie Gebo (right)

 The visit was organised as part of a NARI smallholder livestock development project, funded under the public investment programme (PIP) of the national government.

 It was a consultative visit to gather information on the status of inland aquaculture activities in the area.

The meeting with the fish farmers explored needs for technical assistance in relation to this activity.

There was interest in fish farming but there was lack of skills and technical know-how in raising fish in ponds.

An important issue pointed out by fish farmers was the absence of quality fish feed.

Feeding low value feed and the high cost of developing quality feed is hindering the progress of this activity.

There are a lot of good feed ingredients available but major components of a basic fish diet like fish meal, millrun and copra meal, were not readily available.

These ingredients are needed to produce quality fish feed. 

Another major constraint faced by the fish farmers is the lack of access to markets for their fish. They are producing large numbers of fish which can be sold to supermarkets or restaurants within Lae city.

However, that is not happening, thus resulting in huge surpluses of fish.

There is a great need for a market network to be set up for these fish farmers.

NARI researchers in collaboration with needy smallholder farmers plan to organise a group of fish marketing trials to try to establish a market link between fish farmers in the villages and the markets in Lae.

With the support of local government services, major constraints of smallholder fish farmers in remote places like Wantoat can be overcome.

Such issues faced by fish farmers in Wantoat and other remote areas, should be taken on board by extension service providers, researchers, development practitioners and policy makers alike, to look into developing appropriate strategies that can enable them to have easy access to major feed ingredients for quality fish feed, as well as an established market network for sale of fish. By creating an enabling environment for fish farmers, their efforts can be well rewarded and they will be motivated to do more thus helping to boost the local economy.

Lands Department accused of “corruption, negligence” in Western province

By MALUM NALU

Western province chamber of commerce and industry says Lands secretary Pepi Kimas may have been negligent when he issued leases over 1.25 million hectares of customary land in the North Fly district  on Sept 23 this year.

A landowners’ meeting, the subject of an AAP report published in The National last Friday, was told that there was prime facie evidence that Kimas and/or his responsible officers had acted “at best negligently and possibly corruptly” when he issued the three leases.

“Firstly, the lease over the 632,538 ha. In the Nomad District was issued by the secretary in the name of Tosigiba Investment Ltd,” chamber acting president Warren Dutton said yesterday (Tuesday, November 02, 2010).

“The chairman of the Tosigiba Timber Group Ltd, which was incorporated 1996, and which has 79 of its 82 issued shares held by integrated land groups (ILGs) which represent the customary landowners of much but definitely all of the land included within the lease boundaries, told the meeting that he had no knowledge of or connection with Tosigiba Investment Ltd, in whose name the lease over his people’s land had been issued.

“Secondly, the chairman and others from the Nomad area told the meeting that they had negotiated with the proposed developer to give them (timber) rights over a corridor 5km either side of the road alignment, which the developer agreed to construct in consideration for those rights.”

Dutton said the area over which they had agreed to give these rights would be approximately 100,000ha; however, Kimas had issued a special agricultural and business lease for 99 years over all the land owned by all of the members of all the 79 ILGs.

He said this included all of the land of all of all of the other villages living in the Nomad district who were not party to the negotiations for the road alignment.

“Not one village house, nor one sago tree is excluded from this lease,” Dutton said.

“The lease is also issued over the top of long-existing leases for mission purposes.

“How can the secretary of Lands be so credulous as to believe that any Papua New Guinean Villager would or could be prepared to cede absolutely all of his land to the State for 99 years?

“Surely he, or his responsible officers, should have referred back to the Kiunga and Nomad district lands officers for confirmation that all the villagers really did agree to give away absolutely all of their land.

“By not doing so, surely he has acted, at least, negligently in the performance of his statutory duties.”

Dead fish a cause of concern for Western province villagers

The Kura River is a major source of fish for the Iruupi villagers of Western province. Picture by MALUM NALU.

Villagers from remote Iruupi village in the Western province have complained to Governor Bob Danaya about dead fish being found in the Kura River.

They raised their concern in a letter to Mr Danaya last Thursday (September 25) and asked the Governor to send in experts to ascertain the exact cause of the fish dying.

They believe that the fish could be dying because of oil or petroleum substances in the river.

“We wish to make known to you sightings of dead fish numbering up to 200-plus dying nearly everyday and floating in the river system of Kura,” said ward 14 council member in the Oriomo-Bituri rural local level government Goba Biange, acting chairman/treasurer of Naga Bewani Resource Association Siwida Rumi and association secretary Kapena Memafu.

“The sightings of these dead fish began last month and are getting worse nearly everyday.

“We have made requests to the administration several times to send an assessment team to assess the dying garden crops but nothing has since been done.

“It has now happened to the river system.

“We are suspecting leakages of oil or petroleum substance in the river system that is killing the fish.

“The tide in the river has been normal and there has been no flooding since the beginning of this year.

“We are very worried because our livelihood has been taken away by this unknown mystery.

“Please send us experts in the field of petroleum to investigate and report accurately the findings.”

Copies of the letter were also sent to South Fly MP Sali Subam and the Departments of Petroleum and Energy and Environment and Conservation.