Fisheries and aquaculture can improve household food, health and financial security.
Today, Jeannette Ndagijimana runs a thriving fish hatchery business in Bubanza province. But it’s been a bumpy 3-year journey for the former day labourer, who credits her success to support and training received from ESAFF Burundi Fish and Aquaculture Project.
From day labourer to businesswomen
From 2016 to 2017, Mrs Jeannette and her husband worked in the fields and in a hatchery as day labourers. But the little pay they received made it hard to bear the family expenses.
Looking for a way to increase their earnings, they started selling fingerlings they had bought with the little extra income they had saved. The next year, in 2018, Jeannette started a nursery pond with hatchlings she had got with the support from the Fisheries and Agriculture for Enhancing Fish Production and Food Security project. It was the beginning of her hatchery business. The project aims to increase the productivity of fish farms and improve the lives of thousands like Jeannette and her family through better health and financial security.
A bigger business
Since implementing the techniques learned in training, Jeannette has seen her production and sales grow every year. In July 26th 2019, Jeannette and her husband also started producing and selling fingerlings, which boosted their sale further.
Recently, Jeannette and her husband joined one of the newly-formed quality seed groups, an alliance of local nursery owners, seed sellers and hatcheries. The project established these groups to bring together actors in the fish seed value chain, which, if they buy from each other, enables greater traceability.
As an accomplished businesswomen and fish farmer, Jeannette is well respected by her community. Now, she receives many social invites, offers to attend school committee meetings and is the vice president of a local community-led organization. She continues to share her knowledge with many in the community, stating: “many neighbouring farmers come to me for advice because of my technical knowledge and success”.
