The National Aquaculture Development Authority (NAQDA) has announced that a special project implemented under the Rs. 200 million allocation provided by His Excellency the President through the 2025 Budget to promote the freshwater shrimp industry has successfully increased the country’s freshwater shrimp production to a record level.

Of the total allocation, Rs. 175 million has been allocated for the construction of a sea cucumber hatchery in Chullipuram, Jaffna, while the remaining Rs. 25 million has been utilized for an experimental pilot project aimed at developing freshwater shrimp farming. Under this initiative, shrimp breeding and release programs are currently being carried out in 25 reservoirs across the island.

The most significant achievement of the project has been the remarkable improvement in freshwater shrimp survival rates. Under the traditional method of directly releasing shrimp larvae into reservoirs, the survival rate remained extremely low, ranging between 1% and 3%. However, with the introduction of a new cage-based method, where shrimp larvae are first fed and nurtured for six weeks in specially designed round mesh cages manufactured by Cey-Nor before being released into reservoirs, the survival rate has increased significantly to between 40% and 55%.

The third phase of this experimental program, involving cage-based shrimp culture and release at the Kiriibban Reservoir in Monaragala, has recorded a successful survival rate of 55%. Similar successful outcomes were achieved in previous trials conducted at the Giritale, Akkarayan kulam, and Pudumurippu reservoirs. Following these achievements, shrimp cultured through this method are scheduled to be released into the Mahakanadara and Nachchaduwa reservoirs in Anuradhapura this week.

Implemented with the technical guidance of NAQDA and the participation of the private sector, this project aims to produce high-quality freshwater shrimp weighing more than 300 grams for the export market as well as for leading hotels in the local tourism sector.

Fishermen’s associations in several districts, including the Northern Province, Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, Puttalam, Monaragala, and Hambantota, are actively contributing to the success of this initiative. The government’s objective is to develop freshwater shrimp farming into a major foreign exchange-earning industry while strengthening the livelihoods and economic stability of fishing communities across the country.