Cost of Setting up A Concrete fish Pond in Nigeria As at 13th of August 2016

It must be said that all forms of fish pond has its advantages and disadvantages, from Concrete Pond to Earthen Fish Pond to Collapsible or Tarpauline Fish Pond. This Analysis is intended to emphasise the cost requirements for 1,000 fish capacity of a concrete fish pond, the dos and donts, the cost of set up & management cost for a duration of 6 months and how to crop and harvest your fish pond every month or every 2 months if you have a set of 6 to 7 ponds. Also these article is intended to suggest alternative feed options to help cut cost against wastage of resources, management approach, employable skills and mechanism, marketing & processing options for a desired result. It must be noted that a minimum of 3 ponds will be needed to start a standard commercial fish farm. The 3 sections are needed for the purpose of Nursery pond, grow out pond for the adult fish, and the 3rd designated for sorting as the fishes grow in varying sizes.
Pond Construction: It must be stressed that with #55,600 Naira, you can afford a concrete fish pond excluding the cost of aerator which is not always mandatory but if you must employ the use of fertilizers in your fish pond and allow for longer time to change your water, then the use of aerator is expedient at an extra cost of #20,000 naira. 

Here is a detailed break down of a concrete pond construction: For a pond size of 6ft width X 12ft length X 4ft height. The blocks needed for a unit pond are 4blocks X 8 blocks X 5 blocks= 160 blocks needed per unit pond at #150 per block = 160 x 150= #24,000 worth of blocks.
  1 tons of sharp sand per unit pond = #3,000
1 tons of granite stones per unit pond = #4,200
4 bags of Cement per unit pond = 4 x #1,600 = #6,400
Pond Construction workmanship = #6,000
plumbing materials and workmanship = #6,000
Carpenter material & workmanship for wood work pond top covering = #6,000.
TOTAL cost per unit pond = #55,600, therefore the cost of 6 to 7 unit concrete pond  for a technical and routine harvest every month will be for a span of 6 month cycle = #55,600 x 6 = #333,600 naira.  If plus aerator for a consistent oxygen supply in situation whereby pond fertilization is needed, it will be #55,600 concrete pond cost + #20,000 aerator cost = #75,600. Therefore 6 units = #75,600 x 6 = #453,000 naira. With this cost, you are sure to have 6 ponds with a bonus to make it 7 ponds all together in case u chose to stock 2,000 fishes for a start but it must be noted that a unit pond of 6ft B x 12 ft L x 4ft H can only accommodate 1,000 fishes at most and such limit must not be exceeded as the feeding cost and management quality approach are also contributive factors to determine your out put.
This cost excludes other essential essential provisions which are believed to be readily improvised before the conception of a concrete fish pond idea and whose cost are as follows.
Scaffolding for the suspensions of 2 GP tanks are = #120,000
GP tanks of 5,000 liter capacity X 2 = #45,000 X 2 = #90,000.
Submersible pump = #28,000
Surface pump = #15,000
Borehole = #250,000 (only in the west and south of Nigeria but most likely to be higher in the east or Northern part of Nigeria due to elevation and topography ).

Cost of Shooters fingerlings or Juvenile: at #25 per shooter, #25 x 1050= #26,250.
FEEDING COST: for 1,000 / 1050 fishes, you need between 80 to 100 bags of feed to nurse your fish to a 6 months harvest. if a bag of high formula or foreign feed is at #7,250 therefore 100 x #7,250 = #725,000 or to cut cost, you can buy 20 bags of imported for the 1st 2 months and 80 bags of local for the last 4 month. If 20 x #7,250= #145,000, and 80 x #5,200 of local = #416,000; therefore, #145,000 + #416,000 = #587,250.
For 80 bags of 6 months feed budget cost for 1000 to 1050 fishes, we can also feed the fishes with 20 bags of foreign for the 1st 2 months at #145,000; 60 bags of local for the last 4 months. 60 bags x #5,200= #312,000. For those of you who may worry about the size and cost of feed for the fingerlings or juveniles for the 1st 8 weeks or 2 months, get the regular imported feed size of 3 to 10mm and grind to fine granules of 0.8mm to 2mm at the feed mill and use it for your starter stocks. Don't forget to budget to budget #30,000 for your multivitamin, antifungal and antibacterial, fertilizers and mineral supplements.
Here are the total cost in summary depending on your budget
For 100 bags of imported feed all through with 6 to 7 ponds construction: #725,000 + #453,600 + #30,000 = #1,208,600.
For 100 bags of imported feed all through the 6 months with a single pond : #587,250 + #75,600 + #30,000 = #692,750.
For 80 bags of mixed feed with 20 bags of imported and 60 bags of local feed with the cost of 6 to 7 ponds of 6ft B x 12ft L x 4ft H : #312,000 + #453,600 + #30,000 = #795,600.
For 80 bags of feed with 20 bags foreign and 60 bags local with a single pond budget: #312,000 + #75,000 + #30,000 = #417,000. Your resources or capital at hand will determine your budget.

  NOTE: There are different kind of feed out there, the type and the quality of the feed you use couple with other factors will guarantee your result after a 6 month span. At least you should have it at the back of your mind that 79% of your running cost will go into feed and The feed industry is more like the drains where most of the profit goes but one must be inventive if one must cut cost and yet meet your targets. A handful of foreign plus a few quality feed industries are the ones taking the credit such as Zeigler, Coppens, Durante, Multi feed, Aqua feed, Ranan, Vital feed. It is sickening that we have all sorts of people into the feed mill racketeering business taking advantage of the deficiency of the local feed mill sector due to poor effort divulged into feed mill research. That's why we have intensive fish produce of poor economic importance with vulnerability to carcinogenic effects on human consumption compared to the local breed and also why some people have difficulty ever achieving 4kg at 6 months if fish harvest but instead struggle for the target of 1kg and 2kg respectively before the end of 6 month. The fish I hold in the attached picture to this article is a 4.2kg size at 6 months harvest with a concrete stock capacity of 2,000 fishes using an inventive method of feed.
Many of the feed formular we produce both for pre starter, starter, grower or finishers or rather the fingerlings, juvenile, grower or brood stock feed lack major amino acids which are essential for ideal body weight. Some of us don't know in what ratio or percentage to mix our macro element as such as Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphorus and Sodium, Feed formula as such as Fishmeal, bloodmeal, bone meal, Soybean meal, rice bran, wheat middlings, corn, cassava or broken rice, cotton seed, fish oil or vegetable oil, ducalcium phosphate, vitamin premix, mineral premix, groundnut, meat meal, Essential Amino Acids as such as Arginine, Histidine, Iso Leucine, Lysine, Methionine, Methionine + Cystine, Phenylalanine, Threonine, Tryptophan, Valine, and worse still we don't know when is the right time or to which stock to give the right multivitamine other than just to follow peoples feed formular without proper enquiry. That is why some of us end up buying juvenile instead of healthy fingerlings or shooters to stock our pond but we rather opt for short cuts and to jump start due process and in the end complain that our fish stock and source is bad. Multivitamins are best administered at  fingerlings level and since you cannot ascertain the degree or whether it was ever done, its as good as shooting ducks blindfolded.
This is why most of the weight or fish mass of the fish is lost to smoking in fire during processing or cooking due to excessive poly unsaturated fatty acid which in advertently are carcinogenic. this is not to say that we don't have quality local feed in Nigeria but they happen to be just a few due to poor research in updated feed requirements.

You may call or watsapp Adewale Lawal 08141208884 or visit our offices, feed mill and Agro Allied ventures, Zion Joe ventures at Olutoye Shopping Complex, Opposite Royal Spring Hotel, Oshogbo Osun State or Mr Abiodun Lawal 08180499192 at Akure in Ondo; SDC & Co Plot 7 Olukayode Housing Estate, Agric Bus stop, Ondo Road, Akure, Ondo State. For your improved feed formulae, collapsible fish pond and earthen pond construction and also for consultation for your fish pond set up both in Concrete Pond, Earthen Pond and Collapsible or tarpaulin fish pond. Acres of Land available at Ede in Osun for #150,000 per acre and also hectares of Virgin farm land available for sell in Oyo at #150,000 naira per hectare.
Wish you success in your ventures. written and compiled by Adewale Oladipupo. 

For consultation send #5,000 Naira to the UBA bank acct: 2111133161. Adewale Oladipupo. After payment, send prove of payment to the WhatsApp number +2348141208884 and procede to make your enquiry

 +2348141208884. Zion Joe Ventures. Suite 9 Olutayo, Shopping Complex, By Bicket Bus stop, Oshogbo, Osun State, Nigeria.