Pathways to low-cost aquaponic systems for sustainable livelihoods and economic development in poor communities: defining critical success factors

The combined effects of anthropogenic and climate change factors have severely impacted the yield from the traditional food production system resulting in food insecurity and other socio-economic problems. The predominant food production systems have been reviewed as unsustainable and environmentally unfriendly; therefore, there is a need to adopt innovative and sustainable food production systems locally and globally. This article addresses traditional food production challenges by exploring low-cost aquaponics to attain food security and socio-economic development, notably in poor communities. A low-cost aquaponic system was first developed conceptually using the reflective practice approach. Its applicability to sustainable livelihoods and economic development is explored. Subsequently, the critical success factors of low-cost aquaponics were identified. These include infrastructure design, microclimatic environment, human ecology, and sociocultural dynamics. Due to its integrative and multiple application scenarios ranging from low-tech to high-tech, aquaponics is a complex and unconventional food production system. The reverse scalability to a small scale, the low-cost set-up makes it sustainable in achieving food security and socio-economic development in poor communities.