Fisheries Sector: Driving Growth And Food Security

Accueil / E Business / L'esprit de loi / Fisheries Sector: Driving Growth And Food Security

Fisheries Sector: Driving Growth And Food Security

Driven by the government’s import substitution policy, Cameroon is boosting domestic aquaculture to bridge a 270,000 tonne fish supply deficit.

30 Sep 2026 20:06

I t is 7:30 pm in the Ekounou neighbourhood of Yaoun de, and it’s time for dinner in the Mbori’s family. As Prudencia Kiyoh serves her family, we notice the fresh braised catfish. “Fresh local fish tastes far better. A kilo gram of local catfish ranges between FCFA 2,500 and FCFA 3500. Though a little costly for some housewives, the prices are still fair compared to the same quantity of imported frozen fish.” A few homes away, the reality is different as Clarisse Atangana, explains “I mostly eat imported frozen fish, because the local ones are rarely available. Given the high demand and low supply, some vendors and producers privile ge big restaurants while some sellers simply price them out of reach.” A diet compromise which mirrors a structural imba lance. According to estimates from the Ministry of Livestock, Fisheries and Animal Industries (MINEPIA), national demand for fish now approaches nearly 500,000 tonnes annually. To break this costly foreign de pendence, MINEPIA reinforced the Integrated Agro pastoral and Fisheries Import-Substitu tion Plan (PIISAH). Over the past years, state interventions have focused on equipping local producers with modern gear, scaling floating-cage aquaculture, and setting up cold-chain pre servation hubs. On the ground, local producers are feeling both the pressure and the promise of this transition. Boris Kamgo Youdoum, fish farmer operating in Douala, points to feed costs as the main bottleneck. “The demand from local households is huge. Until recently, high feed costs made it impossible to sell at prices that compete with imported fish. With new local supply chains opening up, Cameroonian farmers are finally starting to scale.”...