The first National Maritime Conference held in 2015 revealed the full potential of the blue economy sector in the country, with the Kenya Maritime Authority estimating the annual output in the Kenyan part of the Indian Ocean alone at Sh440 billion.
Following the maiden conference, the government, through its economic revival agenda, which had food security and employment creation among its priorities, took deliberate steps to awaken “the sleeping giant” with a view to unlocking untapped potentials in the fisheries, aquaculture, maritime transport, logistic services, culture, and tourism sectors, as well as the extraction of oil, gas, and energy.
Although touted by economists and industry players as the next economic growth frontier, the blue economy sector, in a country that has ocean resources spread over 245 square kilometers, has failed to live up to its billing.
Lack of trained personnel and sound policies by the government for the sector, have been blamed for the slow progress not only in Kenya but in the East African region, as established by the Inter-government Standing Committee on Shipping, a stakeholder forum held in October 2021 that called for reforms in the sector.
It is against this backdrop that the government has invested heavily, not only in establishing maritime education and training to solve the skills gap but also in the establishment of cutting-edge research institutions like the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology (JOOUST) Blue Economy Research Hub to help inform policy formulation in the blue economy sector.
Sitting on a 70-acre Lake Victoria water front land about 20 kilometers from JOOUST’s main campus in Bondo town, the ultra-modern blue economy research hub aims to attract both local and international researchers whose findings are expected to unlock potential in the blue economy not only in Kenya but also in the region.
The Blue Economy Research Hub, which was officially commissioned by President William Ruto in January this year, has been entirely funded by the government to a tune of Sh580 million.
The 45 bed capacity research hub is set to open doors for its first researchers in September this year, with the institution’s vice chancellor, professor Stephen Agong, describing the facility as a ‘serene environment for high-level thinking”.
“Ninety-seven per cent of the project is already done, and the contractors are working to complete the installation of biodigesters, power, and water as the plan was to recycle all the water and waste from the facility,” Agong explained.
He disclosed that they are awaiting additional funds from the government to furnish the research hub, adding that they also expect additional funding that would come with specific laboratory equipment for the various research studies that will be undertaken.
The use of the ultra-modern blue economy research hub is expected to cost researchers a minimum of 300 USD per month for the use of the research area and an additional 50 USD per day for accommodation in the lavish rooms equipped with internet connectivity and having access to other recreational amenities like the swimming pool.
“Let nobody cheat you that would be expensive; researchers who want to achieve a particular goal will pay the amount to use the facility. They are able to use the one-bedroom apartments or two-bedroom apartments if they wish to stay with their families for the duration of their research,” stated the university don.
Prof. Agong’ described the setting up of the blue economy research hub as the biggest milestone achieved by JOOUST since it was given a charter a decade ago.
Prof. Agong disclosed that the conceptualization of the facility was motivated by the fact that the university sits next to the second-largest freshwater lake that millions of people from Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan, and even Egypt depend on as a source of livelihood and social economic development.
“In anticipation on how best the university could impact the lives of millions who depend on the lake, we thought of the hub as a way to provide solutions to myriad problems that face people whose lives depend on the lake and also harness opportunities that come with the lake for purposes of economic development,” revealed the professor.
Agong said that the institution’s blue economy agenda does not target Lake Victoria alone but also other water bodies like rivers and even the Indian Ocean, whose potentials are yet to be fully exploited for the benefit of the country’s economic growth.
“Our agenda on the blue economy does not end in Lake Victoria but it cuts across rivers and even the Indian Ocean, where researchers will conduct their studies and help the government come up with sound marine policies,” he explained.
The vice chancellor pointed out that the outcome of various research projects conducted in the hub is expected to inform policies on climate change, food security, waterborne diseases, access to safe drinking water, and advising the government on geo-political issues related to the use of water bodies bordering neighboring countries.
“Because of frequent floods occasioned by climate change, we will explore research on the use of floating structures for housing people in flood-prone areas so that people’s lives are not disrupted during floods,” he said.
“To enhance food security, the ongoing research on the major utilization of lake flies as a source of protein by the university will be advanced to address the dwindling fish population in Kenyan waters,” he added.
Besides policy-related benefits, the research hub will create an opportunity to explore the use of the lake for recreation purposes with a focus on the interests of the youth, as well as the use of the lake for transportation and as a haven for peace in the region.
“The blue economy research hub has already attracted partnerships globally,” Prof. Agong revealed.
“We are already in partnership with the Virginia Tech University in the US and Nordic countries, who are keen on marine research, as well as a professor from the University of Oklahoma who has done a lot of work and has vast experience in the blue economy space,” he said.
Agong’, on the other hand, called on local researchers and philanthropists to come on board and work closely with the university through the research hub, to see how extinct fish species can be re-introduced in Lake Victoria and to come up with a framework on how the freshwater lake can be used sustainably.
“China and India, just like the Nordic countries like Norway, are well advanced in the area of the blue economy because of research. Kenya has to follow suit and learn from the developed countries that have reaped big in the blue economy sector,” Agong said.
The ongoing research projects, like the World Bank-funded Insefoods and Fingerling Production Research being undertaken at the university main campus, are among those that are likely to be scaled up following the establishment of the Blue Economy Research Hub campus.
According to a professor of fisheries and aquatic sciences at JOOUST, Mr Julius Manyala, the university has a fish hatchery that specializes in the production of Tilapia fingerlings.
Prof. Manyala says that the hatchery has a capacity of producing 120,000 fingerlings per cycle, which lasts two weeks.
“We also have brooders, which are males and females, which we use to produce eggs, which we put into the hatchery to produce fingerlings,” says the professor, adding that the hatchery is part of the blue economy hub in Miyandhe that seeks to promote all aspects of the blue economy.
He says that the fingerlings will be transferred to the lakeside research hub in Miyandhe to enable fishermen to access them easily.
The establishment of the hub in the sleepy Miyandhe village has already awakened life not only in the village but also in the adjacent Banga beach, with residents expressing optimism following President Ruto’s visit in January this year.
Power lines, which were previously a mirage for many in the village, dot the area, while the construction of the 29-kilometer Bondo-Nango-Uyawi-Banga road leading to the research hub is ongoing, a clear sign of better things to come.
Business on the neighboring Banga beach is coming to life, with traders from different counties trooping to the once low-key beach, according to the beach chairman, Lazarus Otieno Abong’o.
“The coming of the campus has increased our interactions with people from various places; previously, you would only get the Luo community here, but over the last few years, other communities have come, and that is to our advantage,” Abong’o said.
“The university campus has also improved business in the area and provided a ready market for our products, which has empowered us economically,” he added.
Fredrick Nyamunge Otindo, the Miyandhe Community Development Group Coordinator, said the coming of the Blue Economy Research Hub Campus and the presidents’ visits have marketed their village to the world.
“President Ruto is the first president to have visited the area since independence, and that has inspired many from this village to take advantage of the campus to change their lives,” Nyamunge remarked.
He thanked the president for his personal donation of Sh1 million for the construction of a business complex at the beach and appealed to the university to expedite the construction of the facility for the Banga people to enjoy.
By Brian Ondeng’ and Philip Onyango
