Siti Nurhasmira Abu Hassan, Centre for Knowledge Transfer, Industry and Community Linkages

A government-funded project has recently been launched, and Universiti Malaysia Terengganu (UMT) is heavily involved in it. A team of UMT researchers specializing in aquaculture technology has been trusted to ensure the success of the project.

The project with a fund of RM100,000 is being carried out at Kampung Padang Limau Nipis, a locality about 30 kilometres from UMT.

The project is under the SejaTI MADANI programme, an initiative introduced by the government to boost economic activities among communities and enable them to augment their income.

The project is based on integrated aquaculture, where tilapia farming is combined with vegetable cultivation for better effectiveness and efficiency.

The team of UMT researchers appointed as project advisors is led by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Liew Hon Jung from the Institute of Tropical Aquaculture and Fisheries. They are responsible for providing guidance to the project participants on aquaculture-related aspects, fish food nutrition, and management of an integrated fish farming and plant cultivation system.

To kickstart the project, participants have set up 10 canvas tanks for tilapia rearing. Each tank will be able to accommodate 500 tilapias, which means the total will reach 5000. 

Participants will also be exposed to effective vegetable cultivation techniques. Waste water from the fish tanks will be used to water the plants, which will also fertilize the soil and expedite plant growth. This is an example of a sustainable agriculture that greatly benefits the communities as well as supports United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).

With continuous guidance and supervision, participants will be able to harvest the tilapias within four to five months and the vegetables within three months. Each family involved in the project is expected to earn an average income of RM2,500 per month, which will definitely improve their standards of living.

When this project is successfully completed, it will become a model that can be implemented at other places to help improve the local economies there.

During the launching ceremony at the project’s site in January, tilapia seeds have been released into the fish tanks in the presence of local leaders, government agency representatives, and the local residents. In his speech, Tuan Azmi Tuan Mohd Yuseri Isa, Alur Limbat state constituency coordinator, expressed his full support towards the project that not only provides economic benefit but also introduces a more sustainable farming and aquaculture method.