Kenya in move to control coastal fishing

Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries Cabinet Secretary Willy Bett. (Photo: Beverlyne Musuli/Standard)

 Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries Cabinet Secretary Willy Bett said final inspection of the vessel will be done next week before it is delivered.

“The next frontier in terms of fully exploiting natural resources that abound in plenty as we strive for food self-sufficiency is the Blue Economy. The Jubilee Administration has taken it seriously and has restructured the ministry to include Blue Economy,’’ he said.

Mr Bett was speaking at the Kenya Marine Fisheries Research Institute in Mombasa with Fisheries Principal Secretary Prof Micheni Ntiba, where he met staff led by the institute’s director, Prof James Njiru. He said the vessel is expected in Kenyan waters in May and staff have already been recruited.

Kenya exploits a paltry 9,000 metric tonnes of fish catch from its coastal marine waters but is known to have the potential to produce 300,000 tonnes annually, valued at about Sh75 billion.

Foreign ships operate along Kenya’s 200-nautical mile Economic Exclusive Zone, with the illegal fishing robbing the country of about Sh10 billion a year.