Business communities and fishermen at Ogal landing site in Seme Sub-County, Kisumu County, have expressed disappointment over the omission of critical infrastructure in the construction of the Ksh150 million ultra-modern fish landing site project.

The infrastructure is funded through the Aquaculture Business Development Programme (ABDP), a joint initiative between Kenyan government and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).

It is designed to promote production in aquaculture sector and improve livelihoods.

Ogal Beach Management Unit (BMU) Chair Moses Owino raised critical concerns regarding omissions from the original project designs and administrative delays. Mr Owino was speaking during a stakeholder’s field visit and physical inspection of the project.

“We are incredibly grateful to the ABDP programme for gifting us this modern landing site and the fish cages. They represent a massive leap forward for our community. However, our joy is incomplete because vital components we were promised have been left out,” Owino said.

According to the BMU representative, the omission of a landing jetty poses critical structural challenges that undermine development in the lakeshore community. The jetty and a restaurant, he said, were both featured in the project’s initial master-plans but are excluded in the implementation phase.

“Without a proper jetty, docking and offloading fish catches safely remains a major challenge,” he said.

Further, the community members expressed frustrations over a lengthy administrative bottleneck to restock the cages with fingerlings.

“Despite receiving modern fish cages over eight months ago, the cages remain empty and un-stocked, stalling potential revenue generation for local families,” Owino pointed out.

Once fully operational, the landing site will serve as aggregation centres, providing ample cold storage facilities to help fisher-folk preserve their catch while they seek out markets.

At the same time, the community expressed deep gratitude for the investments made so far, noting that the project is poised to transform the local blue economy.

IFAD’s Senior Global Technical Specialist for Fisheries and Aquaculture, Dr Richard Abila, acknowledged the issues and emphasized the need for seamless logistics to make the project a success.

Further, ABDP also plans to construct ultra-modern fish landing sites at Kusa and Asat beaches to support local fisher-folk and strengthen the entire fish value chain.

• A Tell Media / KNA report / By Robert Ojwang’