Find Fisheries expertise in Zambia

The fisheries sector contributes around 1% to Zambia’s GDP (2007). While this is a small percentage, fisheries are crucial to Zambia’s rural economy as a source of income and food. It has been estimated that 300,000 people earn part of their income directly or indirectly from fisheries, of which approximately 25,000 people are formally employed in the primary economic sector and 30,000 in the secondary sector (trade).

As an informal economic activity, Zambian fisheries are dominated by artisanal fishing using traditional vessels. Artisanal fishing accounts for 85% of catch, while industrial fishing of pelagic species accounted for the remaining 15%. The Bangweulu and Tanganyika fisheries of the Congo Basin are the most productive, accounting for 43% of annual catch. There are estimated to be more than 6,000 small-scale fish farmers and over 13,000 fish ponds in Zambia, with commonly farmed species composed mainly of variations of tilapia: the spotted tilapia, the long-fin tilapia and the red breasted tilapia; however, a number of exotic species including the common carp and the Nile tilapia are also caught in the country, and freshwater sardines which are an important Zambian export.

The vast majority of catch is domestically consumed, and as the local market is not fully satisfied by domestic production fish is also imported. Tourist oriented recreational fishing is also fairly large in Zambia, the catch profile largely dominated by the Tiger Fish.

Fisheries organisations in Zambia
Capital Fisheries Ltd
Department of Fisheries in the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, The
Ginoka Fisheries

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