Fisheries are an important source of food, income and nutrition in Tanzania, where 25% of the country’s population depend on coastal resources or inland lakes for their livelihoods. Over 180,000 people are employed in the fisheries sector, with a further 19,223 people involved in fish farming.
Current fish production is around 376,000 metric tons a year, with around 97% of fish sourced from small-scale fisheries. The remaining 10,317 metric tons comes from large scale commercial fishing. Aquaculture produces an additional 10 317 tonnes including seaweed (450 tonnes); and despite its huge potential, is largely untapped. There are presently 21,300 fish ponds used for aquaculture.
Despite the country’s low consumption of fish, at 5.6 kg/person/year, fish makes up 19.7% of the country’s animal protein intake.