According to 2024 data from Kenya Fisheries Services (KeFS), Kenya produced about 168,000 metric tonnes of fish annually, valued at about Sh39.6 billion.
The fisheries industry provides direct employment to over 60,000 fishers, while supporting an estimated 1.2 million people directly and indirectly through processing, trading and the fishing supply chain.
The 2024 breakdown includes: Inland capture- 86,500 metric tonnes valued at Sh14.5 billion, Marine catches, 48,500 metric tonnes valued at Sh18.6 billion and Aquaculture (fish farming) at 33,400 metric tonnes valued at Sh9.9 billion.
At the same time, the country consumes between 450,000 to 600, 000 metric tonnes of fish annually, thus the catches from our waters does not meet the country`s demand of this vital product in the diet of many communities in the country.
To this end, Kenya imports about 10,000 metric tonnes of fish valued at over Sh100million in order to meet this deficit.
Fish production is primarily driven by inland capture fisheries (notably Lake Victoria), but marine and aquaculture sectors are actively growing to bridge the gap.
But the just like in any other part of the world, the country is facing challenge of dwindling fish stocks. Fish harvests from the Kenyan portion of Lake Victoria, touted as the biggest source of this vital commodity in the country, stood at 86,394 metric tonnes in 2022, 70,313 metric tonnes in 2023 and 67,575 metric tonnes in 2024.
For decades, Lake Victoria has been a livelihood and a source of income for the communities surrounding it. The main catches on this Lake is Tilapia, Nile perch which was introduced much later and dagaa commonly known as omena.
Dismus Odhiambo, a fisherman who has been depending on the Lake Victoria as his source of income for approximately 27 years has seen fish stocks dwindling over the years.
Odhiambo who was born in Muhoroni migrated to the shores of Dunga beach on Lake Victoria in 1999 and embarked on fishing to make a living, but since then, he has seen fish catches from the lake declining over the years.
“You see on a normal daily basis we release 60 boats with the fisherman to bring the commodity and for the past few years, this has changed, now we only deploy 20 boats to the waters because the catch has reduced and because of restrictions to sustain the reducing stocks on the lake, most of our fishermen fear being arrested during fishing activity by the fisheries officers,” he adds.
He says sometimes the fishermen are forced to move further into the lake due to scarce fish and face the risk being arrested by authorities form the neighbouring countries, over claims of crossing into their waters.
The fisherman also admits the water of the lake has been polluted and that is why, survival rate of fish is minimal.
Odhiambo now urges the waste management unit to control the waste in the city, so that the lake is not polluted.
Irene Achieng, a fishmonger at Dunga beach says fish prices has risen up because pollution is choking the fingerlings as they die due to lack of enough oxygen supply in the water.
“When the fish gets scarce due to various activities on the lake and in the city, prices go up and many cannot afford it, ” Achieng adds.
Scientists identify several key drivers of Kenya’s changing climate including burning of fossil fuels from the transport industry, factories, electricity generation and deforestation, all of which serve to reduce natural carbon absorption.
Other causes include industrial and domestic pollution, rapid urbanization, agricultural runoff and land degradation and global warming caused by emissions from countries worldwide. These combined pressures have intensified weather extremes and weakened natural ecosystems.
The County Director of fisheries and blue economy Susan Adhiambo says illegal fishing has also lead to fish shortage at the Lake, as some of the fishermen defy the fishing regulations on the lake by casting that fishes out under age fish, which could have otherwise matured and multiplied.
She says Kenya Marine Fisheries` Research Institute ( KMFRI) recently conducted a research on water pollution and how it is contributing to low fish yields in the lake and it was discovered that as female fish produce eggs, they are being contaminated and as a result they cannot hatch.
” Backflow of water from the lake also affects the fish population as the varying temperatures is normally a threat to fish life at the lake and also leads to sedimentation, which destroys fish eggs and also contaminates the water,” Adhiambo explains.
The fisheries department has now established measures to ensure members of public only consume appropriate fish from the lake by inspecting fish catches to ensure the traders comply with the existing health safety measures.
The county government is also training the local fishermen and encouraging them to form Savings and Credit Cooperative Societies (Saccos) to help them in marketing and funding of their fisheries activities.
The Fisheries Officer says food has now become an economic issue and fish has been one of the commodities that is drastically reducing in both local markets and landing sites and that`s why the government is encouraging fish farming in order to help meet the demand.
She notes that the fish eating communities are also increasing, as some people who were not eating fish previously, now consume it with relish and when the demand of goods is high, the prices also go up.
But all is not lost as the government is keen to grow this industry. Under its Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA), Kenya’s fisheries and blue economy strategy, aims to scale annual sector earnings from Sh40 billion to Sh350 billion and triple fish production from 163,000 to over 450,000 metric tons by 2030.
The plan focuses heavily on commercializing deep-sea fishing, expanding aquaculture, and boosting local Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in this sector.
To this end, the government is looking forward to increasing this production through encouraging aquaculture, provision of seed (fingerlings) to farmers and establishment of centres of excellence, where farmers can get quality seeds.
Some of the major projects meant to improve the fisheries sector in the country include the Kabonyo Fisheries and Aquaculture Centre in Kisumu.
This is a flagship project expected to produce 28 million to 30 million fingerlings annually to support small-scale farmers and restock Lake Victoria.
The other project is the construction of nine modern fish landing sites across the Lake Victoria basin, paired with the Homa Bay Modern Fish Market to serve 2,000 fishmongers daily, thus, reducing post-harvest losses.
In yet another project, the government has set aside Sh1.4 billion for the construction of new fish landing sites to ensure the Coast region’s fishermen reap maximum benefit from fishing activities.
All this is part of Sh10billion, multi-year strategy to revitalize the fisheries and blue economy sector. The goal is to scale up fish production from 163,000 metric tons to over 450,000 metric tons and raise sectoral earnings to Sh350 billion by 2030.
This will also be done through improvement of the fishing gears and boats to encourage deep sea fishing and improve the catches.
By Mabel Keya and Robert Onyango
