Get started
How do I get started in aquaculture?
Where to set up, what you need, what to budget, and what a first cycle can bring in.
Four questions come up before every start-up: where, with what, for how much, and after how long. The answers below come from the PSTACI leaflet « Comment se lancer en aquaculture ? » (April 2025). Amounts are indicative: they depend on pond size, on the feed and fingerlings used, and they exclude electricity and water.
1 · Where do I set up?
You need a plot that meets one of these conditions:
Near a watercourse
In a lowland (bas-fond)
On bare ground fed by a borehole
On open water
2 · What do I need?
3 · Which system do I build?
Ponds
Dug in earth, often in a lowland.
Cages
Submerged in an existing body of water.
Above-ground tanks
Liner on a frame, with filtration and aeration.
4 · What should I budget?
600 m² pond
1 870 500 FCFA
estimated budget
Two 8 m³ above-ground tanks
2 442 000 FCFA
estimated budget, itemised below
| Item | Qty | Unit cost | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Above-ground tank, 8 m³ (PVC liner, 4 m × 1 × 2 m) | 2 | 200 000 FCFA | 400 000 FCFA |
| Surface aerator (2 hp, 550 kW, 16 kPa) | 1 | 200 000 FCFA | 200 000 FCFA |
| Installation (drain and inlet pipework, masonry) | 1 | 300 000 FCFA | 300 000 FCFA |
| Biological filtration (micro-batteries, purifier) | 2 | 80 000 FCFA | 160 000 FCFA |
| Landing net | 1 | 20 000 FCFA | 20 000 FCFA |
| Scale (10 kg) | 2 | 6 000 FCFA | 12 000 FCFA |
| Generator (3.5 kVA) | 1 | 200 000 FCFA | 200 000 FCFA |
| Water tester | 1 | 100 000 FCFA | 100 000 FCFA |
| Tilapia fingerlings (3 to 5 g) | 1 000 | 100 FCFA | 100 000 FCFA |
| Feed bags (whole cycle) | 18 | 25 000 FCFA | 450 000 FCFA |
| Technical follow-up | 6 | 50 000 FCFA | 300 000 FCFA |
| Transport, lodging, logistics | 1 | 200 000 FCFA | 200 000 FCFA |
| Total | 2 442 000 FCFA |
These amounts vary with pond size and with the feed and fingerlings used. They include neither electricity nor water.
5 · How long, and what does it bring in?
5 to 8 months
length of one production cycle, depending on the technical route
500 kg
1,000 fish of at least 500 g, for a first six-month cycle
1 250 000 FCFA
at 2 500 FCFA per kilo of tilapia
Over twelve months of production, that is two cycles, this comes to roughly 2 500 000 FCFA. From the second year the investment is behind you: only running costs remain — follow-up, fingerlings and feed — estimated at 850 000 FCFA per cycle. The activity generally becomes profitable at the second or third harvest, between 12 and 18 months. Above-ground tanks, costlier to install, only get there after the third cycle.
Run the numbers with your own prices
The amounts above are a starting point, not a promise: the price of fingerlings, feed and fish changes from one town and one season to the next. The simulator applies the same logic to your own figures and gives you margin, cost per kilo and break-even price.
Advice before you start
- Get the basics of aquaculture before starting.
- Follow the operation regularly.
- Approach the regional offices of the Ministry of Animal Resources and Fisheries (MIRAH) for advisory support.
Source: PSTACI leaflet « Comment se lancer en aquaculture ? », . Indicative amounts.