- Number of illegal fishermen in the lake on the rise
- Majority of those who had drowned in the lake were aged below 25 years.
Image: File
Over 20 youths involved in illegal fishing have drowned in Lake Naivasha since the year began with fears that the numbers could rise in the coming days.
Stakeholders around the troubled water body are now calling for concerted efforts to address the rising cases as the number of illegal fishermen in the lake continues to rise.
This came as one of the two men who died in the lake last week was laid to rest at the Longonot public cemetery in Naivasha after an autopsy revealed that he died due to drowning.
In the last couple of weeks, the numbers of illegal fishermen who include school-going children has risen sharply.
Friends of Lake Naivasha chairman Francis Muthui said the majority of those who had drowned in the lake were aged below 25 years.
He revisited the recent incident where two men aged 20 and 21 years drowned near Kihoto area while illegally fishing in the lake.
“We are deeply concerned by the rising cases of drowning in the lake involving very young men and it’s time the government intervened,” he said on Monday.
Muthui said solution lay in supporting the Kenya Coast Guards Service in patrols to keep away the youths.
On his part, Karobia Kiratu from Haki Jamii Rights Centre noted that poverty and lack of jobs had led to the high number of deaths around the lake.
He said majority of those involved in illegal fishing were former flower farm or hotel workers out to get a meal for their families.
“Currently tens of young people have invaded the lake in search of their daily bread and there is a need to offer them an alternative source of income as one way of resolving the drowning cases,” he said.
According to the Lake Naivasha Network group secretary Grace Nyambura, majority of those who had drowned were using empty water jerricans as makeshift boats to access the lake.
She noted that the practice was rife across the lake with tens of the minors dropping out of school to join the illegal but lucrative fish trade.
“We have noticed a trend where minors have now joined in the illegal fishing and we are asking the government to intervene,” she said on Friday.
Last week, tens of youths from Kihoto estate took to the streets of the town to protest the death of two men who drowned while illegally fishing in the lake.
-Edited by SKanyara