From little fish, big fish grow

Just three men, who are all related to each other, began a solidarity group in the village of Taronik in Armenia that has grown and grown. Back in 1990, against the background of a difficult socio-economic climate and in order to create jobs for themselves, the men pooled what resources they had and began to work in a number of agricultural areas including animal husbandry, wheat and fodder production, and, most significantly, fish farming. It is the last of these activities that has been outstandingly successful, thanks in part to a series of ECLOF loans.

Since its beginning, the Taronik solidarity group and its family members have raised trout. The group quickly expanded but from 1992 to 2001 poor social-economic conditions within Armenia prevented further growth and brought hard times for the group.

Taronik solidarity group members on their fish farm weigh a sturgeon to see how much weight it has gained. Left to right: Hoghmik Yeghiazaryan (group leader) and his son Norayr, Hakob Malkhasyan and Rafik Kirakosyan (group members), and Tsolak Malkhasyan (son of Hakob Malkhasyan).

In July 2001, the group successfully applied to ECLOF for a loan to the equivalent of US$4,000, and used the money to build four ponds plus a workshop for breeding fish. Over six months, Taronik's three members dug a deep well in order to provide the ponds with clean water, and installed piping and pumping systems to get the water to the ponds at a rate of 40 litres per second. The enterprise uses no chemicals and all the water used ends up in Taronik's community irrigation system.

As a result of the group's expansion, the fish stock rose to around 20,000. Therefore, the men requested a second loan and received the equivalent of US$6,000 in March 2002. With this they enlarged their stock further to 40,000 fish, and also bought feedstuffs. Income also doubled.

To continue their business and stand up to their competitors, the group received a third ECLOF loan equivalent to US$17,600 in April 2003 for what had now grown from a micro-enterprise into a small business. This enabled the solidarity group to increase their number of ponds to seven, and their wells to four. The enterprise also bought a truck and three cars to enable the members to travel and buy feedstuffs, as well as transport the fish they sell.

During the period of the third loan, the group had planned to pay itself reduced wages. However, they were able to receive their normal income because business was so good as a result of the members' high standard of work that kept loses to a minimum and increased the weight of the fish, which led to higher prices when they were sold. Consequently, the group was also able to repay this loan ahead of time, and then in April of this year applied for a fourth one equivalent to US$30,000. This will enable further expansion to take place through the upgrading of existing pools and the construction of four more, as well as the boring of a deep well and the installation of a new water circulation system. A building for the hatching and early care of young fish is also planned, as is diversifying into breeding sturgeon in addition to trout. The Taronik group will also begin to export their fish to other European countries and have begun to research what will be needed to satisfy consumers' tastes and government regulations.

Taronik's latest loan of US$30,000 may seem large, though it is under half of what the group needs for its latest development plan. It is also important to realise that the enterprise employs 17 workers, and a total of 45 people depend for their livelihood on the fish farm. In addition, food for the fish is the main expense in breeding them. To buy fish food at a reasonable price, it is necessary to go abroad and purchase it directly from the producer. However, the minimum quantity that can be bought is one ship's container, i.e. 20 tons; this costs around US$25,000.

The success of the Taronik solidarity group shows what a group of committed people can achieve, and how such a group can successfully compete with others on the open market, whilst earning a good income.

 

In the background, Hoghmik Yeghiazaryan feeds fish, while Rafick Kirakossyan cleans the wire netting at the end of a pipe that connects two of the ponds, to ensure water flows from one to the other on their solidarity group's fish farm.