Procurement News Notice |
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| PNN | 6433 |
| Work Detail | A few days after decrying the presence of illegal fishing vehicles in the Indian Ocean, President Uhuru Kenyatta signed into law the Fisheries Management Development Bill. This law empowers the Navy to impound foreign vehicles found within our Exclusive Economic Zone, 200 nautical miles from the shore and establishes the Kenya Fisheries Advisory Council while also laying emphasis on the conservation, management and development of fisheries. The Bill is in tandem with ‘Fish Trade’, a European Commission funded project in conjunction with NEPAD that was launched in 2015 to strengthen the fishing industry in Africa by improving access to regional markets and in so doing, enhance food and nutritional security and income for the fishing communities. Africa became a net exporter of fish in 2011 with one-third of the 9.9 million tonnes of fish consumed in the world coming from Africa. Fish trade fetched Africa $24 billion in 2011 but lost $1 billion through illegal fishing. Kenya, as Mr Kenyatta noted, stands to lose Sh10 billion annually from illegal fishing which also destroys our marine life. If properly managed, fishing can create employment and provide a means of livelihood to millions of Kenyans. For instance, a bigger percentage of fishmongers are women. As an economic activity, fishing has not only empowered, but also enabled women to shift focus away from reliance on men for money and are now able to feed their families and accord some level of education to their children, besides the provision of a continuous supply of nutritious food. At the Coast, especially, it is possible to engage idle youth productively by finding them viable projects which, in the end, will lure them away from drug lords or terrorist cells. Equally important, protecting local fish farmers and communities against unfair competition with fish imports was long overdue. |
| Country | Kenya , Eastern Africa |
| Industry | Food & Agriculture |
| Entry Date | 15 Oct 2016 |
| Source | http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2000214803/kenya-government-protection-of-fish-industry-long-overdue |
