- The lake has over 300 licensed boats
- Water levels on the decline due to the harsh weather
Image: GEORGE MURAGE
The fight against illegal fishing in Lake Naivasha has received a major boast following the formation of a multi-agency security team to address the illegal vice.
The team that includes members of the Beach Management Units has been tasked to also deal with traders buying the illegal catch.
Other government departments in the team include Kenya Coast Guards Service, fisheries, Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute, KWS and National Police Service.
In the last couple of months, fish stock in the troubled water body has dropped sharply with illegal fishing and the cold weather pattern blamed for the drop.
According to the chairperson in charge of patrols in the lake Grace Nyambura, the multi-agency team was already working in the lake.
She said the entry of the team had seen a sharp drop in cases of illegal fishing which had threatened the future of the fisheries sector.
“The national and county governments in conjunction with the Beach Management Units have formed a multi-agency team to patrol the lake and tame cases of illegal fishing,” she said.
Speaking after a stakeholders meeting on Wednesday, Nyambura expressed her concern over rising cases of illegal fishing along the shore of the lake using filament nets.
She said the fingerlings were being sold in 2kg tins at Sh100 a move which was a major threat to the dwindling fish catch.
“Before the county moves in to restock the lake, they should first assist in dealing fully with the issue of illegal fishing on the shore of the lake,” she said.
The chairman Lake Naivasha Boat Owners association David Kilo said poverty and unemployment were to blame for the rising cases of illegal fishing.
He noted that the lake was surrounded by various informal settlements where tens of youths were unemployed with the lake turning out to be their only source of livelihood.
“The national and county governments should also look into ways of empowering the unemployed youths through alternative job opportunities,” he said.
Kilo warned that the planned restocking of the lake would be fruitless if the issue of poaching and use of undersize nets was not addressed.
Kamere landing beach chairman Daniel Onyango blamed double taxation by the county and national governments for the dwindling sales.
“With fish catch dropping, our sales have also gone down and we cannot afford to pay licensing fees to both the national and county governments,” he said.