June 16, 2026

 

Made-in-China aquaponics system delivered to Eastern Nepal

 

 

An aquaponics system developed by a Chongqing, China, government-backed firm has been shipped to the district of Jhapa in Eastern Nepal, marking the latest piece of Chinese aquaculture technology sent abroad.

 

Zhai Xuliang, deputy director of the Chongqing Municipal Fisheries Technology Extension Station, told the People’s Daily that the aquaponics system would increase the output of both fish and vegetables in Jhapa by 50%, guaranteeing local food security.

 

"Fish excrement becomes nutrients for vegetables, and the purified water absorbed by the vegetables flows back into the fish pond, creating a cycle," he said. "With better water quality, there are fewer fish diseases, and we can harvest an extra season of vegetables."

 

Zhai added that the equipment and training was transferred to Jhapa in alignment with the Belt and Road Initiative – China’s blueprint to building trade relationships through global infrastructure and aid projects.

 

Madhav Shrestha, the editor in chief of the Nepalese Journal of Aquaculture and Fisheries and the chairman of the Center for Aquaculture-Agriculture Research and Production (CAARP), which is a Nepalese fish-farming and research organisation, told SeafoodSource that aquaculture is experiencing fast growth in Nepal.

 

"Carp has been a well-established cultured species for years now and is mostly cultured in a semi-intensive system," Shrestha said, adding that pangasius and Nile tilapia were also recently introduced. "International partners can help to develop the aquaculture industry in Nepal in research, academia, post-harvest processing, and market development."

 

Shrestha said besides China, the European Union has supported Nepalese universities in developing aquaculture curriculum and internship programs.

 

Additionally, a US Department of Agriculture-funded project, SAMBRIDHI, is also being implemented in partnership with local Nepalese organisations, aiming to improve local aquaculture farms’ access to "improved inputs, services, financing, and end-market linkages" while also "expanding trade of aquaculture products locally including live fingerlings, fish, and processed fish." The project also seeks to integrate US soy into local aquafeed.

 

Chongqing has also opened the Aquaculture Practical Technology Promotion and Demonstration Center in Jhapa to further local knowledge on aquaculture and grow the sector.

 

China has become the go-to provider of aquaculture technology for countries around the world. The Nepal shipment comes closely on the heels of exploding demand in North Africa and the Middle East for Chinese aquaculture technology.

 

- SeafoodSource