In Ghana, Lawrencia Kwansah, an aquaculturist, recently nominated for the Royal Academy of Engineering Africa Prize is championing a new technique with her Aquaponics Hub. Kwansah established the hub to give families options for urban farming during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“With my knowledge and background in aquaculture, I understand that when you raise fish in tanks, there are issues of waste because you would have to discard the water and replace it with new water. We thought about how to make it work in Ghana since people are becoming more concerned about the food they eat, where it is coming from, and what it contains,” Kwansah stated. Kwansah’s Aquaponics Hub kit is solar-powered and can be used in off-grid areas or where power outages are prevalent.
“We have other devices that check for these things, but they are often expensive. Many people operate aquaponics on a small scale; they don’t have the money to buy expensive gizmos for the system. So we input a sensor monitor to their unit to help them check the pH level, oxygen level, and ammonia level. They don’t have to sit and guess. It gives them the necessary information to let the aquaponics system run effectively,” Kwansah stated.
In terms of expansion, Aquaponics Hub is looking to work with NGOs and the government to train young people and make them grow their food either for commercial purposes or to supplement the food they consume at home. “Right now, we are only in Ghana, but we are looking forward to expanding to neighboring countries like Togo, Benin, and Cote d’Ivoire,” she said.
Read the complete article at www.venturesafrica.com.