How a Ghanaian technology is helping fish farmers detect hidden threats before fish die
Ghana is looking to aquaculture to help close its fish-supply gap. But producing more fish comes with another challenge — keeping them alive. For fish farmers, some of the most dangerous threats begin where the human eye cannot reach. A pond may appear calm and healthy while dissolved oxygen levels are falling, ammonia is rising or the pH is changing.
Ghana aims to boost its fish supply via aquaculture, but a key issue is preventing fish deaths due to hidden water quality threats. Fish farmers struggle to detect problems hidden from sight, such as declining dissolved oxygen, rising ammonia or pH shifts. By the time fish show signs of distress at the surface, significant losses may have already occurred.
One farmer lamented the difficulty of identifying water quality issues until fish began to die. The farmer discovered AquaMet, a monitoring technology developed locally in Ghana. AquaMet provides real-time data on water quality parameters, including dissolved oxygen, ammonia, temperature and pH, transmitted wirelessly to a mobile app.
This allows farmers to monitor conditions remotely and take action before fish begin to die. AquaMet founder Frank Owusu designed the system to move farmers from reactive to proactive management, helping them prevent losses instead of merely reacting to them. The technology gives farmers a continuous view of water conditions, something that can be difficult to assess visually.
During a demo, Owusu showed how the sensor, placed inside ponds, cages or tanks, collects data and sends it wirelessly to the mobile platform. The aim is to help farmers identify potentially dangerous changes before they become visible through fish behavior or mortality. With over 750 farmers currently using AquaMet and partnerships across the aquaculture sector, the innovation aims to scale locally developed solutions.
Ghana’s aquaculture strategy highlights research, innovation and technology adoption as crucial for expanding the sector. For farmers, immediate action is crucial – they cannot always wait until water conditions deteriorate visibly. AquaMet believes its data-driven approach can help farmers detect invisible changes early, potentially protecting their fish, investments and livelihoods.
Written by urgent.news from MyJoyOnline Ghana's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
