The Kenyan and Ugandan governments have committed to ease the transportation of fish from Lake Turkana to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
A high powered delegation comprising of Kenya Fisheries Principal Secretary, Francis Owino, and Ugandan Agriculture PS, Maj Gen David Kasura-Kyomukama, under whose docket fisheries falls, visited Turkana County for a fact-checking mission with a view to identifying the challenges facing the fish mongers and recommend ways of resolving them.
The team held a meeting at the County Commissioner’s office before embarking on a trip to the shores of Lake Turkana to witness the type and size of fish recommended for harvesting and holding grounds.
Owino said the two teams agreed to a joint mission from Busia to Turkana to establish a few facts about the flow of fish from Turkana through the Busia border.
“We have seen for ourselves and engaged a number of key stakeholders and from the Kenyan side we are satisfied that the mission is going to unlock the challenges that we were facing,” said Owino.
The two sides resolved to form a multi-agency team headed by Turkana County Commissioner Muthama Wambua, to ensure compliance in the fish trade. Other members of the team will include Kenya Revenue Authority, Security and Public Health.
The two teams will hold another meeting after which they will issue a joint communique in Busia after the completion of the mission on Friday.
Maj Gen David Kasura-Kyomukama said his team had come to join the Kenyan team in finding a solution on how to structure the fish trade from Turkana through Uganda to DRC.
“I will ensure that fish from Kenya passes to Congo unhindered. We do not have any problem, every good system requires to be checked once in a while. We want to improve the current system,” he said.
He warned that the region stands to lose if there no fish trade between Kenya and Congo and rooted for sustainable exploitation of the fish from the lakes to avoid depleting the resource.
“I am glad and satisfied from what I have seen and the information I have received on what happens in the fish trade,” he said.
By Peter Gitonga
