This archive report was first published on 13 July 2021.
On Lake Victoria, a growing trend of cage fish farming is bridging the supply deficit of fish in Kenya. The country produces only 200,000 tonnes of fish against a demand of almost one million tonnes.
According to the Kenya Fisheries Service Assistant Director Christine Etiegni, there are 5,300 fish cages on the Kenyan side of Lake Victoria, installed in Busia, Siaya, Kisumu, Homa Bay, and Migori counties.
However, the popularity of the cages has sparked a scramble for space between conventional fishermen and new investors, causing conflict. This is especially prevalent in Suba Sub-county where the farming takes place on a large scale.
Chairman of the Suba Sub-county Beach Management Units William Onditi attributed the bad blood between the two groups to a lack of proper regulation governing the new trade.
“It is very unfortunate that cage fish farmers just need a letter from the National Government and start installing their cages in the lake without consulting fishermen through their leaders,” said Onditi.
On July 13, 2021, a photo of a man feeding fish in a floating cage in Lake Victoria was taken by Caleb Kingwara for the Standard.
