Nigeria requires about 3.2 million metric tons of fish for consumption annually in the country.
The Director-General, National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA), Lucy Ogbadu, disclosed this at the graduation ceremony of 38 females who received training on fish spawning and breeding in Kano on Wednesday.
The training was conducted by the agency in collaboration with the Bayero University Centre for Dryland Agriculture.
The director-general was represented by the Kano State Coordinator of NABDA, Kabiru Yusuf.
She said the country currently produced a total of 1.1 million metric tons of fish, leaving a huge gap of two million tons in the supply of fish and fish products.
“In 2014 alone, Nigeria imported 8,000 metric tons of fish thereby employing foreign producers to feed Nigerians thus depleting our hard-earned resources and foreign exchange.
“The gap in the supply of fish in the country is enormous, “Ogbadu said.
She said the training was designed to build capacity of the beneficiaries in fish spawning, breeding and entrepreneurship.
She called on them to make the best use of the training so as to contribute in feeding the country with fresh and clean fish.
In his remarks, a lecturer at the Department of Dryland Agriculture, Sunusi Gaya, said that the department would continue to partner with groups and individuals who were ready to learn skills on agriculture.
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