Fish production from Lake Victoria has fallen to 90 metric tons per annum compared with an earlier production of 180,000 metric tons of fish per annum. This is according to Dr Kevin Obiero, the Center Director at Kenya Marine Fisheries Research Institute Sangoro. Speaking during the Lake Region Economic Bloc (LREB) private sector forum at Busia Vocational Training Centre, he said that the drop calls for concerted efforts to reverse the trend.
“Kenya’s annual fish demand is 500,000 metric tons but the low fish production has forced the country to import fish from china to bridge the 350,000 metric tons deficit, which is a worrying trend considering the great potential the country has of owning the largest freshwater lake in Africa,” he said.
However, Dr Obiero noted that there are over 6,000 cages installed in the Lake with an estimated 10,000 metric tons of fish, emphasizing that Maseno University is also supporting aquaculture. He said the varsity has also introduced Biofloc technology, a Blue-cycling system for enhanced fish production and Finger pond technology for turning flood menace into economic gain.
He also noted that Busia County has graduated into a leading fish handler with a daily export of 4 metric tons per day to the Democratic Republic of Congo, adding the county has also constructed a Ksh60million trans-shipment market with cold storage facilities.
