Understanding Diseases and Control in Seaweed Farming in Zanzibar

In view of all production and productivity problems the seaweed aquaculture industry has been facing as well as the impact of the seaweed die-off on the Island economy with sharp decline of income and revenues for thousands of farmers and traders and, recognizing the compounded problems that about 20,000 seaweed farmers' livelihood are based on a single aquaculture system affecting mostly women and youth, the FAO-funded Technical Cooperation Programme “Support to the Aquaculture Subsector of Zanzibar” (TCP/URT/3401) recognized and recommended the Biological and Economic Research on Seaweed as a relevant pillar of the Aquaculture Development Strategy Plan. This technical report is part of the FAO-TZ project “Support to Seaweed Diseases and Die-off Understanding and Eradication in Zanzibar” TCP/URT/3601/C1, and covers an initial analysis of the die-offs due to epiphyte infestation and ice-ice disease in Zanzibar. The assessment is mainly based on site visits to the seaweed farms in Unguja and Pemba and laboratorial analysis of collected seaweed samples conducted by the authors between February and June 2017. Findings were cross-checked with a literature review on the topic and presented during stakeholders’ meetings in both Islands.