Nile Perch shortage hits Jinja City

Jinja City has been hit by a scarcity of Nile Perch, with sources at Masese Landing Site attributing the shortage to the mass deaths of the species two years ago.

In 2021, the government said an estimated 100 tonnes of fish, mainly Nile Perch, died mysteriously in a space of two months.

The reason for the mass deaths of seemingly healthy fish remained unclear, fuelling speculation of possible poisoning. But the fisheries department at Ministry of Agriculture cited limited oxygen in the lake. 

Mr Stephen Mengo, a fisherman, said the mass death of the fish specie has since created its scarcity in the market, with most customers now resorting to the consumption of Tilapia.

“You do remember very well the year when Nile Perch were floating dead in the water; nobody knew what exactly was killing them and since then, they are disappearing gradually and also those surviving do not move freely in the water,” Mr Mengo said on Monday.

Fishshmongers sell the Nile perch and its fish maw, also known as swim bladder separately, with the latter fetching more money per kilogramme sold.

In 2019,  Dr Robert Kayanda, the director of Fisheries and Management at Lake Victoria Fisheries Organisation,  told Daily Monitor  that fish maw is used to make operational stitches that are used on patients in theatres and as a refining agent in the manufacture of beers and wines.

“Chinese use them in soups and it is a delicacy among their community and are mainly exported to Asian markets (Hong Kong) between $250 (about Shs912,000) and $500 (about Shs1.8m) per kilogramme,” he said.

Currently, a kilogramme of fish maw fetches about Shs1 million. 

Mr Robert Mugoya, a fishmonger at Masese Landing Site,  said a kilogramme of Nile Perch currently ranges between Shs10,500 and Shs11,000 up from Shs9,000. 

“We are simply being told by fishermen that Nile Perch is scarce but no satisfactory explanation is given for the shortage,” he said. 

He said most customers have resorted to consuming Tilapia which costs about Shs 9,500 per fish.

Fishing methods wanting

Mr Peter Okado, a fisherman in Njeru in Buikwe District, said the poor fishing practices have also contributed to the  reduced Nile Perch stock.

Mr David Kasakya, a fisherman in Ntongolo, said Nile Perch is on demand  and those who catch them directly deliver them to fish factories because of their lucrative  maw, adding that licensing fishermen and boats has also greatly affected some fishermen.

“If you see a fisherman selling Nile Perch in the market or at a landing site, the buyer is lucky. Even catching a Nile Perch in a day is very hard,”  he said.

Mr Kasakya said  the Nile Perch business had reduced unemployment especially among the youth.  But many  youths have resorted to using illegal fishing gear to catch immature Nile Perch.

He added: “Two years ago, you could  drop 100 hooks and get 40 kilogrammes  of Nile Perch. But now you might get less than 10 kilogrammes on a lucky day or nothing most times.”

The chairperson of Masese Fish Market, Mr Majidu Magumba, said the area has about 1,000  people dealing in  fish.  He said fishermen are concerned about the scarcity of the Nile Perch. 

Ms Juliet Namaganda,  a food vendor in Jinja  City,  said  she has not cooked Nile Perch since last week due to its scarcity.