Nile Tilapia Farming and Diversity in Sub-saharan Africa: A Review

This paper examines Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) in Sub-saharan Africa, where the expansion of aquaculture farms has resulted in the escape of fish, including Nile tilapia, into natural water bodies. This has led to the mixing of escaped tilapia with native species. To successfully manage and conserve these mixed species, it is important to understand their morphogenetic features. This review analyzes different production systems and morphometric variations of Nile tilapia in Sub-Saharan Africa, providing insight into the underlying factors. This review was carried out by exploring published papers, reports and books to gather information on the subject. The results showed that Nile tilapia are cultured in various systems, depending on the economics, skills, infrastructure and environmental conditions of farmers. Sub-saharan Africa exhibits a significant morphometric diversity of Nile tilapia, which has been studied using traditional and geometric morphometric methods. Both in situ and ex situ conservation methods are recommended to preserve the diversity of Nile tilapia for future aquaculture breeding programs in the region.