• The invasive weed has choked beaches in Nyatike subcounty, blocking access roads
• Thirty fishermen who have invested in 50 fish cages for tilapia risk making losses
Image: MANUEL ODENY
Migori fishermen and aquaculture investors have asked for help to tackle water hyacinth menace, which is affecting stock.
The invasive weed has choked beaches in Nyatike subcounty on Lake Victoria, blocking access roads.
“The weeds have led to other plants growing, creating a hideout for predators to fish, such as otters, crocodile and snakes, which not only affect fish stock but are also a threat to our lives,” Fredrick Okoth said.
He was speaking at Lwanda Konyango beach on Friday, when Migori Governor Ochillo Ayacko issued fishermen from the beach and those in Sori and Lidha with Sh3 million fish cages and equipment.
Okoth said in bays and lagoons, where fish cages are placed, the growth of hyacinths and decaying bushes in bushes created by the weed in waters has reduced oxygen levels.
“We have seen a high number of fish deaths in cages in other areas, and we are afraid the same might happen here as water hyacinth has increased,” the fisherman said.
Okoth started a career in the fish sector seven years ago as a fisherman and a fishmonger, especially the tilapia species, but after dwindling stock, he started cage fish farming.
“It reached a time when five of us in an overnight fishing expedition to catch tilapia only ended up with 10 fish at dawn, with other species becoming harder and harder to get. This made me venture into cage fishing,” Okoth said.
Since he ventured into cage fishing two years ago, he has not regretted as he gets more than 10,000 fish from his two cages every three months.
Cavine Ouma, another fisherman who invested in fish cages, said they are now afraid as water hyacinth is quickly colonising waters.
“We often come together as youths to manually dredge the weed in our boats to make ways to the lake and our cages, we often dump them on the beaches,” he said.
Migori County Beach Management Unit chair Julius Odhiambo said across public beaches, 30 fishermen have invested in 50 cages for tilapia.
“But generally, the number of cages is more as private investors have heavily ploughed capital in the sector. But we are all jittery now with the issue of water hyacinth,” he said.
Governor Ayacko also issued 400 life jackets to be distributed across all 27 beaches in the county and three motorcycles worth Sh3.9 million for extension services.
“We intend to resource ourselves by finding credit and support to the fishing community and equipping them with modern techniques, technologies and business training,” he said.
He said the county will liaise with the national government to control the spread of the weed in the lake to ensure gains in the sector are not reversed.
According to the Kenya Fish Processors and Exporters Association, the Lake Victoria Fisheries contributes close to 2.5 per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product, translating to Sh14 billion.