by Mbaka Suchia

So you think Kisumu is the place to be when you want to eat fresh fish? You are not alone. That is a mental image shared by many of Kenya’s non-riparian communities.

Sitting on the shores of Lake Victoria — the world’s second largest fresh water body — Kisumu and the wider shoreline communities have been synonymous with fish and fish eating.

That could have been true in years past, but it is fast changing.

The cost of fish in Kisumu and other lake-side towns is prohibitive and the supply has been diminishing.

A fisherman casts his net near Dunga Beach, Kisumu and, inset, some fishermen operate boats which have been converted for recreational trips. Photos: Jacob Otieno and Mbaka Suchia

Just a couple of years ago, the lake’s favourite produce, Tilapia was the delicacy of choice on many family tables. It was also a favourite pick at hotels and eateries around Kisumu town. Not anymore. Many families here can hardly bring themselves to remember the last time they ate rech — fish in Dholuo.

And the reason has nothing to do with a dwindling taste for fish or cultural taboos. Blame the high prices.

A kilogramme of fresh tilapia now trades at about Sh280. At the beginning of the year the same went for Sh150. Two years ago it could cost under Sh80.

Nile Perch is equally expensive. To get a kilogramme of this variety one now has to part with Sh220. Last year you could have had it for Sh140.

And it is not just the large species that are fast becoming an expensive luxury on most people’s diets. Even the small varieties are costly. For example, the sardine-type fingerlings known as omena — the common man’s fish that is as widely available as sukuma wiki (kales) has also become a pricey commodity. Hardly two years ago, a 250gramme tin of omena retailed at Sh10. Now the same goes at Sh30.

And the price increments are showing no signs of abating soon. Indeed, visitors who arrive here hoping to satiate their taste buds with fish are waking up to the reality that the delicacy is cheaper in Nairobi or Eldoret than at the source.

"Many of us have to wait until Christmas to eat good fish. It is fast becoming a special-occasion-only delicacy," a Kisumu resident says.

The mother of three says she cannot remember the last time she bought fish for her family. They have resorted to eating the relatively inexpensive remainders of fillet fish, commonly referred as mgongowazi (bare back).

"It all has to do with the forces of supply and demand," explains Joshua Omondi of the Dunga Fishermen Co-operative Society at Dunga Beach. He adds: "Fish is getting scarce by the day and so the prices have to go up."

In recent years, it has been a matter of grave concern among the fisherfolk that their catches are getting depleted each day. In the same breath, environmentalists and scientists have voiced concerned that the lake was fast shrinking and so is its fishing potential.

The latest statistics of harvests obtained from the Fisheries Department confirm grim state of the lake situation. Last year 44,320 tonnes of Nile Perch, 46,966 tonnes of omena and a paltry 9,619 tonnes of Tilapia were harvested from the lake. In 2007, the figures were 46,560 for Nile Perch, 49,438 for omena and 10,125 for Tilapia.

This is an average of about 100,000 metric tonnes a year of edible fish.

Ten years ago, a total of 200,000 metric tonnes of all species of edible fishes were harvested on the lake.

The statistics aside, there are other concerns too. Environmental stakeholders and marine scientists are concerned about the destruction of the lake’s wetlands and increasing human activities on the lakeshores, including dumping of effluents from industries and residential quarters.

The recent debate on the destruction of the Mau Forest has been keenly followed here among fishing industry stakeholders especially because that is the main catchment area for the lake.

But the traders are also not ignorant of the fact that they too could be culpable to some extent in the destruction of marine life.

"There are some among us who use destructive fishing methods such as under sized nets and chemicals. This is slowly contributing to the depletion of fish here," observes Omondi, the Dunga Fishing Co-operative official.

He suggests stiffer penalties and increased surveillance of the water body. He also proposes support for the growing concept of externally breeding fish in ponds.

From the retail consumers’ perspective, the local fishmongers have been accused of commercialising the business to deal with bulk buyers who ferry the fish to other destinations.

This leaves limited supplies for the shoreline market.

Last year, fish earnings from the region were recorded as having dropped by a marging of over 20 per cent, compared to the figures of 2007.

The Fisheries Department officials say most of the fish is exported to European Union markets and other countries after being processed in fillet factories.

Second in consumption of the lake fish is Nairobi and other major towns to where fish is transported in refrigerated vehicles.

Another drawback for the fishermen is exploitation by middlemen who buy fish at low prices from the source and sell it at high profits elsewhere.

As a solution, officials have suggested that the fishermen strengthen their co-operative unions to bolster their bargaining power for better prices and facilities.