Museum to have wildlife trophies

ODM leader Raila Odinga tours Tourism CS Najib Balala at Jaramogi Oginga Odinga's musolium in Bondo, Siaya county on February 18,2019 when the CS visited the lake region to promote tourism. [Photo: Denish Ochieng/ Standard]

The Tourism and Wildlife ministry will introduce wildlife trophies at the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Memorial Museum.

Tourism CS Najib Balala has said the ministry is working on ways to have legal structures in place to help with establishment of the museum to be an education centre and a tourist attraction.

He said they were working with the African Union’s special envoy for Infrastructure and Development Raila Odinga, who is also Jaramogi’s second son, to actualise the dream.

Mr Balala spoke at the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Memorial Museum in Bondo sub-county on Monday.

The CS, who on Sunday visited Lwanda-Kotieno beach in Rarieda Constituency, said Kisumu’s Kit Mikayi and the city’s waterfront were some of the sites earmarked for development.

“We have realised Nyanza has potential for tourism and wildlife attraction. It also has amazing products such as beaches, islands and hills, which only need to be developed and properly marketed to attract tourists,” he said.

Balala said they intended to open up the region and create opportunities for investors to put up hotels, water sport and transport facilities.

“We are calling for collaboration with the people of Nyanza and in the spirit of the famous handshake, the Government is committed to ensuring that the Nyanza tourism circuit is delivered,” said the CS.

Raila said they were looking for trophies of animals to be taken to the museum. “The move will give children opportunity to see some of the wild animals that used to exist in the region in the pre-colonial period,” he said.

He regretted that children today grew up without knowing animals because wild animals that once existed in the region were relocated to the Masai Mara Game Reserve by colonialists.

The two leaders, accompanied by Jubilee Party Secretary General Raphael Tuju, also visited Kit Mikayi tourism site in Kisumu.