• Its new headquarters will be built on a 2.8-acre parcel donated by the Kenyan government in 2006.
• The land is near the Kisumu International Airport.
Image: FAITH MATETE
After 15 years of waiting, the Lake Victoria Basin Commission has started building its headquarters in Kisumu city.
The commission, an organisation of East Africa Community which is the first to have it’s headquarters in Kenya, has been operating from the Nyanza regional headquarters.
The commission is mandated to regulate and promote sustainable utilisation of resources along the Lake Victoria Basin for the benefit of the EAC member counties.
Its new headquarters will be built on a 2.8-acre parcel donated by the Kenyan government in 2006.
The land is near the Kisumu International Airport.
EAC Principal Secretary Kevit Desai said the headquarter complex will cost$1.3 million (142.7 million). Desai was in Kisumu on Wednesday to launch the construction of the project.
He was accompanied by LVBC executive secretary Ally Said Matano.
“The headquarter in Kisumu is expected to coordinate activities of the Commission across the Great Lakes Region," Desai said.
Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda , Burundi and South Sudan, which share the Lake’s resources, will each contribute a percentage towards the project according to the PS.
Matano said the construction will be done in two phases.
“Phase one will include the construction of part of the administrative block to accommodate staff and the second staff quarters and another office block,” Matano said.
He commended EAC partner states for their commitment towards building the regional offices in Kisumu.
PS Desai said the government was keen on increasing investments in Lake Victoria as it seeks to promote the blue economy and create more wealth and employment for Kenyans.
He said that agencies mandated to promote the blue economy have carried out enough scientific and business research in the Lake, and that implementation of findings was underway.
"People are starting to look towards the large portion of the earth the surface that’s covered by water, which previously seemed inaccessible," he said.
The PS said the blue economy was getting a lot of attention because of increasing pressure on land resources, which is leading investors to tap into the under-utilised water resources.
He thanked the World Bank for injecting Sh1 billion to help harness and develop the blue economy at a time when the government is committed to reviving the old railway line to Kisumu and opening the port.
He urged investors to take advantage of the regeneration of the port and rehabilitation of the railway line linking Nakuru and Kisumu to tap into the trade potential across Lake Victoria and make it more proactive as it used to be in the 70s.
"This is our major aim. How can we lure donors, pull our synergies to improve the water quality and as well as promote utilisation of the Lake resources sustainably?’’ the PS posed.
Trade across the region through the lake was booming in the 70s and 80’s where large vessels would ply Lake Victoria from Kisumu port, connecting to Kendu Bay, Asembo bay, Mbita and Mfangano islands.
The government is revamping these landing sites under the port regeneration project launched after the handshake between President Uhuru Kenyatta and ODM leader Raila Odinga in March 2018.