Fishermen cooperative societies from the five lake region counties have formed a joint union to tackle the challenges they encounter while marketing their fish to clients in Nairobi.
Port Victoria Fresh Fish Cooperative Society chairperson Emily Magio said the unreliable market has become a key challenge that has seen the members lose millions of money leaving them poorer.
Magio spoke during a meeting of union members and delegates meeting on Saturday at a hotel in Port Victoria town in Bunyala subcounty, Busia county.
“We had decided to partner with other counties along the lake region; Busia, Kisumu, Siaya, Migori and Homa Bay, sharing the same challenges to form a formidable force that will enable us to speak with one voice and jointly tackle manipulation by our clients especially from Gikomba and City markets in Nairobi,” she said.
The chairperson said lack of a cold storage facility at Marenga beach was also another key challenge that has led to huge losses by the cooperative members.
“We are appealing to Busia county government to allocate and provide us with funds to enable us to build a cold storage facility at Marenga beach,” she said.
The joint union chairman Yusuf Seph called upon both Busia county and the national governments to support the fishing industry which he said has employed several youths hence addressing the unemployment problem in the country.
He expressed concern that the cooperative members have been taking fish to their clients in Nairobi, but at the end of the day are not paid. He said this ended up jeopardizing and demoralising the fish traders.
“The members this cooperative society have been taking their fish to their clients in Nairobi, but surprisingly they are yet to be paid their proceeds totalling to Sh20million,” Seph said, adding that they will stop selling fish to clients who have been manipulating them.
The union chairman at the same time complained that fishermen from Uganda have been taking advantage of the East African protocol to dominate the market by transporting their fish to Nairobi without inspection for security purposes.
He called upon the Beach Management Units from the respective union member counties to form Saccos that will help them address the challenges.
However, Kakamega county fisheries director Jonathan Masava, who was the chief guest speaker, advised the members and delegates of the five lake region counties to ensure they attend respective county public participation forums where they will propose cold storage facilities.
Masava cautioned the fishermen against using bad fishing gears he said has led to a reduction in the population of fish in Lake Victoria.
He advised the members of the five counties union to ensure they enter into an MoU with their clients before they sell their fish to avoid manipulation.
“This will act as your security as failure to honour the agreement will give you the teeth to take legal action against those involved,” he said.
(Edited by R.Wamochie)
