Council for Scientific and Industrial Research-Water Research Institute (CSIR-WRI) scientists have developed an integrated aquaculture-agriculture system to boost food production while reducing pollution from fish farming wastewater.

The system seeks to convert nutrient-rich wastewater from fish production into an input for crop production, reducing waste and making better use of limited water resources.

Dr Seth Agyakwah, Head of Aquaculture, CSIR-WR, disclosed this at the Institute’s 2026 Mid-Year Review in Accra on Wednesday.

He said the Integrated Agriculture-Aquaculture System involved assessing the nutrient content of wastewater from fish production and using it to grow crops according to their nutrient requirements.

Dr Agyakwah said trials had produced good yields, including cucumbers, demonstrating the potential of the system to support food production.

He said the technology was particularly relevant to fish farmers using earthen ponds, concrete tanks, reservoirs and tarpaulin tanks, who often discharged wastewater without considering its potential for crop production.

“Wastewater from one resource can be used to produce useful products and can be an input for another food production,” he said.

Dr Agyakwah said the approach would also help address environmental and health risks associated with the use of polluted water for vegetable production.

He noted that some farmers used water from gutters to irrigate vegetables, potentially exposing consumers to harmful contaminants, including heavy metals, which might not be visible when the produce was served.

“We want to help the Fisheries Commission and the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to consider this as instant food production as well as reducing environmental pollution,” he said.

Dr Agyakwah said CSIR-WRI had transferred the technology to some youth, women and men through training supported by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the West and Central African Council for Agricultural Research and Development (CORAF).

He said the beneficiaries had been supported to develop business plans and entrepreneurial skills, but access to financing remained a major barrier to commercialising the technology.

Dr Agyakwah appealed to the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to consider the integrated system as a model for food production, particularly in areas facing water scarcity.

He said the technology could also serve as a climate-smart intervention by helping farmers make productive use of available water and reduce their vulnerability to climate shocks.

In a separate presentation, Dr Sylvester Afram Boadi, a Research Scientist at CSIR-WRI, called for improved coordination among institutions responsible for water, energy, food and environmental planning.

He said fragmented planning often resulted in missed opportunities, citing energy infrastructure that could also support irrigation and community water needs.

Dr Boadi proposed stronger inter-institutional collaboration and suggested that the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) could lead cross-sectoral planning to ensure that infrastructure projects delivered benefits across the water, energy, food and environmental sectors.