Nigeria Aqua Settlements

The Nigeria Aqua (Aquatic) Settlements, like its Farm Settlement counterpart, are a series of economically feasible and practical community-based Commerce and Youth Empowerment Projects.

 

The concept of the Nigeria Aqua Settlement is a COOPERATIVE.

 

It is a concept of assigned fish ponds in 1-acre increments. Actual fish type/vegetation will vary with water source and climate. Assemblage of smaller aquatic farmers, youth farmers, contemporary farmers into a large cooperative affords them their needed resources such as financial support, mechanization of farming, pesticide and fertilizers, and access to broader international markets. Along with support services and securities that individual Aqua farmers cannot afford. Any farmer can apply for a multiple of 1-acre ponds based on demonstrated ability to productively manage their assigned ponds. The area needed for ponds will be based on the type of waterway serving the Settlement, Aquatic produce being cultivated, but ideally from 5,000 acres and more.

 

Every pond comes with an elevated single-family residence to live in.

 

The assignments are conditional use, based on continuing pond farming. Any lapse in farming will return ponds and residential assignments back to the cooperative. Transfers can only be done through the cooperative and can only be to another Aqua farmer willing to tend the ponds.

 

Most of the resources needed by the Aqua farmers such as schools, security agencies, produce buyers, feed sellers, and such are brought to the Aqua farmers due to the scale of opportunities. These resources, in turn, help to build the colonies. Vocational Training Centers help the children of the farmers to become better farmers themselves, or become skilled tradesmen such as carpenters, bricklayers, electricians, boat mechanics. These skills can help in the building of the settlements, and these skills can be exported into the larger local communities. The Non-Farming Land Area needed for these shared resources typically will be about 50 Acres.

 

The cost for developing these settlements are significantly less than the sum of cost otherwise born by individual Aqua farmers. The key costs to the developer of the Settlement is acquisition of water edge land rights, development of infrastructures, administrative facilities, and initial operations cost until the full execution of the cooperative. Most of the commercial, educational, and warehouse construction and operation costs are done as a 20-year BOT (Build, Operate and Transfer), and the balance can be achieved through a PPP (Public, Private, Partnership).

 

GOAI & GOAL as design firm and initiators are exploring collaborating opportunities with investors and community leaders.