The country's aquaculture production has increased by over 500 per cent in the last four years, latest statistics by the ministry of Fisheries Development show. Production stood at 4,220 metric tonnes in 2008 before shooting to 22,000 tonnes. This represents a nine percent jump of the national fish production.

The fisheries secretary, Prof Charles Ngugi, said the area under production has also risen from 722 to 15,000ha.

"A total of 51,200 ponds have been constructed in 160 constituencies countrywide and stocked with 50 million fingerlings," he said.

Ngugi said aquaculture value chain had created directed employment for over 150,000 farmers and short-term employment for over 1 million youth. The professor said that due to high demand for fish, many large water bodies had experienced dwindling stocks. The official was speaking at Karagita, in Naivasha district, during the official launch of the Rural Based Fish Feed Production Programme.