Hapa Nets for Fingerling

Hapa Nets for Mass Fingerling Hatchery Production

The "Hapa Nets for Mass Fingerling Hatchery Production" technology i a cage-like enclosures (referred to as "hapa" nets) placed within ponds to safeguard and manage brooders, hatchlings, and juvenile fish. The hapa nets come in various shapes and sizes, using materials like wooden poles and mesh nets, offering an affordable solution for hatcheries of all sizes. The nets require periodic maintenance to ensure effective functionality, but they significantly improve the management and production of fingerlings for the aquaculture industry. These nets are designed to shield fish from predators, ensuring better control over breeding, feeding, and aeration. They provide a conducive environment for fish growth, resulting in enhanced fertilization rates, reduced mortality, and increased production of fry and fingerlings. This technology is well-suited for various aquaculture species and adaptable to different water bodies such as earthen ponds, riverbeds, or concrete tanks.

This technology is TAAT1 validated.

8•8

Scaling readiness: idea maturity 8/9; level of use 8/9

Adults 18 and over: Positive high

It enhances livelihood opportunities by increasing fish production, creating more stable jobs in aquaculture, and improving economic returns.

The poor: Positive medium

The technology provides affordable solutions for small-scale fish farmers, improving food security and creating income opportunities, contributing to poverty alleviation.

Under 18: Positive low

This technology indirectly improves their nutrition by ensuring a consistent supply of fish, a source of protein in their diets, which helps combat malnutrition.

Women: Positive high

It supports women engaged in aquaculture by offering better management tools for fish farming, allowing them to achieve higher production rates and improved incomes.

Climate adaptability: Highly adaptable

It supports sustainable aquaculture practices that can adapt to changing climate conditions, such as fluctuating water temperatures.

Farmer climate change readiness: Significant improvement

It empowers farmers to adapt to climate variability with better control over fish stock and water management.

Biodiversity: Positive impact on biodiversity

It helps preserve aquatic biodiversity by reducing overfishing of wild fish populations, supporting sustainable fish breeding.

Carbon footprint: A bit less carbon released

Lowers the carbon footprint by increasing the efficiency of fish production, reducing the need for feed and other inputs.

Water use: Same amount of water used

It promotes efficient water use by improving management of fish stock, reducing the need for frequent water changes.

Problem

Inadequate supply of high-grade fingerlings from improved fish breeds
Poor and uneven growth rates
High fingerling mortality in open ponds
Predation by birds, reptiles, amphibians, and aquatic insects
Need for rapid and uniform production of fish stock
Difficulty in monitoring and managing brooders, hatchlings, and juveniles
Aggressiveness among fish during spawning leading to injury and mortality
Degradation of net materials in sunlight requiring periodic replacement
Damage from storms, winds, or heavy rainfall
Clogging of hapa mesh limiting water circulation and aeration
Poor water quality within the net without adequate circulation
Need for complete feeding regimes within the enclosure and adjustment during different growth stages
Scrubbing of hapa nets to prevent clogging and maintain water circulation
Accumulation of uneaten feed and fish waste resulting in poor water quality
Cleaning of dirty hapa nets with urea and scrubbing with a brush
Monitoring and recording of fry and fingerlings harvested from individual hapa for rearing efficiency optimization.

Solution

Provides a convenient means of safeguarding brooders, hatchlings, and juveniles from predators and other fish.
Eases the management of brooder, fry, and fingerlings, allowing for closer monitoring and adjustment of breeding, feeding, or aeration regimes.
Enables higher fertilization rates, even growth of fish seed, and reduced mortality, resulting in increased production of fry and fingerlings per unit area.
Allows for easy collection of fry from tilapia brooders and rearing of fingerlings inside a pond.
Offers large benefits for all-male fingerling production through manual sexing, hormonal reversal, or YY male technology.
Suitable for various aquaculture species such as tilapia, catfish, carp, prawn, and crayfish.
Can be installed in different water bodies such as earthen ponds, riverbeds, or large concrete tanks.
Can be adjusted in shape and size according to the dimension and depth of the water body.
Affordable and simple to build with materials like fine mesh screen netting, wooden poles, or floating barrels.
Can be used in ponds stocked with other fish without risk of competition.
Suitable for shallow water with low flow rate and level of fluctuation.
Allows for periodic scrubbing to prevent clogging and maintain water circulation and quality.
Can be cleaned easily with a brush and pond water, ensuring high levels of rearing efficiency through regular inspection and maintenance.

Key points to design your project

The technology facilitates cost-effective mass fingerling production, alleviating poverty by generating income for fish farmers and bolstering food security with increased fish availability. It also empowers women in aquaculture, stimulates rural economic development, and advocates for sustainable practices to reduce environmental impact.

To integrate this technology into your project, follow these steps and prerequisites:

Identify an appropriate location and size within the pond.
Procure net materials with the correct mesh size.
Determine the optimal stocking density of fish or fry.
Ensure access to high-quality, affordable feed for rapid growth and profitability.
Promote the utilization of cultured fingerlings within the local aquaculture sector.

Allocate resources for training and post-training support during project implementation.

Collaborate with agricultural development institutions to facilitate the adoption of the technology in your country.

As the technology is available in various countries, including Zambia, Uganda, Togo, Tanzania, Sudan, South Sudan, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Rwanda, Nigeria, Niger, Mozambique, Mali, Malawi, Madagascar, Kenya, Ivory Coast, Guinea, Ghana, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Equatorial Guinea, Djibouti, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic, Cameroon, Burundi, Burkina Faso, Botswana, Benin and Angola, include delivery costs to the project site and account for import clearance and duties if applicable.

Explore partnerships with agricultural development institutes and agro-dealers for effective implementation.

Consider integrating complementary technologies like All Male Tilapia Fingerlings and Hybrid African Catfish to optimize efficiency.

Cost: $$$ 1 USD

Per square meter

150—900 fingerlings per square meter

Production in hapa

8—20 fish farmers

Number of fish farmers in a single hatchery

IP

Open source / open access

Countries with a green colour: Tested & adopted
Countries with a bright green colour: Adopted
Countries with a yellow colour: Tested
Countries with a blue colour: Testing ongoing

Countries where the technology is being tested or has been tested and adopted
Country	Testing ongoing	Tested	Adopted
Angola	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Benin	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Botswana	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Burkina Faso	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Burundi	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Cameroon	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Central African Republic	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Côte d’Ivoire	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Democratic Republic of the Congo	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Djibouti	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Equatorial Guinea	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Eritrea	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Ethiopia	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Ghana	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Guinea	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Kenya	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Madagascar	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Malawi	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Mali	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Mozambique	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Niger	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Nigeria	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Rwanda	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Senegal	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Sierra Leone	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
South Sudan	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Sudan	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Tanzania	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Togo	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Uganda	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Zambia	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted

This technology can be used in the colored agro-ecological zones. Any zones shown in white are not suitable for this technology.

Agro-ecological zones where this technology can be used
AEZ	Subtropic - warm	Subtropic - cool	Tropic - warm	Tropic - cool
Arid
Semiarid
Subhumid
Humid

Source: HarvestChoice/IFPRI 2009

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals that are applicable to this technology.

Goal 8: decent work and economic growth

It creates job opportunities in aquaculture and promotes sustainable economic growth.

Goal 12: responsible production and consumption

It supports sustainable fish farming practices, reducing waste and resource use.

Goal 1: no poverty

By increasing fish production and hatchery profitability, it helps improve incomes for smallholder farmers and fish producers.

Goal 2: zero hunger

It enhances food security by providing a reliable source of fish, an important protein in diets.

Goal 13: climate action

It improves resilience to climate change by making aquaculture systems more adaptable and sustainable.

Deep Cleaning of Dirty Hapa Nets: Remove dirty hapa nets from the pond and soak them with urea for 72 hours. Wash the nets with a suitable cleaner and rinse thoroughly to ensure cleanliness.
Fry Production in Hapa: Utilize brooders weighing approximately 300 grams with a male to female ratio of 1:2 or 1:3. Maintain a stocking density of 4-5 brooders per square meter in the hapa nets.
Daily Monitoring and Transfer: Inspect the hapa nets daily to identify fry. Transfer the identified fry to other hapa tanks or rearing ponds for further growth and development.
Record-Keeping and Monitoring: Maintain detailed records of the number of fry and fingerlings harvested from each hapa net, along with feed input. This monitoring ensures and helps achieve high rearing efficiency.