Profitability assessment of catfish farming in the Federal Capital Territory of Nigeria

This study assesses the current economic performance of catfish production in Nigeria using profitability analysis taking the Federal Capital Territory as a case study. Aquaculture production in Nigeria has grown significantly in the last two decades. The farming of catfish accounts for more than half of the total national aquaculture production. However, a decline in production has been observed since 2015 and it has been reported that some catfish farmers are abandoning fish farming. A survey was carried out using a structured questionnaire and oral interviews. The farms sampled were categorised into small and large-scale farms for analysis of their profitability and operational management. While the overall assessment of most of the performance indicators portrayed catfish farming in the study area to be profitable, large-scale farms perform better than the small-scale farms in all the indicators assessed with Net Farm Income (NFI), Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR), Operating Profit Margin (OPM) and Gross Ratio (GR) of N2,611,811, 1.25, 18.5 and 19.5 respectively for large-scale farms and N-17,247, 0.97, −11.06 and − 6.93 respectively for small-scale farms. Management of inputs affected the profitability of the farmers with small-scale farmers expending on average N703 per kg fish produced against N598.5 kg⁻¹ fish produced by large-scale farms. Profitability of the farms was influenced by farmers' years of experience. The majority of small-scale farmers (84%) had less than 10 years of experience. Aside from the operational cost, poor fish performance was also considered a major constraint by the farmers. There is a need to improve broodstock management and carry out a feasibility of establishing a broodstock production programme that will facilitate an adequate supply of quality fingerlings. Effective training and improved extension services are also recommended to ensure profitable and sustainable catfish farming in Nigeria.