A Mega Port? Just Revamp Our Good, Old Town of Lamu

By Githua Kihara, Daily Nation, 20 October 2011

A lot is going on in Lamu from construction of a multi-billion port to new rail and road infrastructure. But for many residents of this town, one of Kenya’s oldest, there is little to show for it. They simply want the government to heed their pleas and help in rebuilding the town.

The residents, most of whom are fishermen, have petitioned the government to incorporate comprehensive fishing programmes in the proposed Lamu port project since it will reduce the area available for fishing, their main source of livelihood.

The ground-breaking ceremony for the 22-berth port is expected to be held next month.

The chairman of Rasini Fishermen Co-operative Society, Mr Mohammed Ali, said that although the locals were supporting the project due to its significance to the economy of the region, adequate consultation has not been done on how the project will affect the fishing community, or on the mitigation measures to be put in place.

“The project will significantly reduce the area that the local fishermen can exploit,” Mr Ali said, adding that although Kenya has exclusive economic zones extending 200 nautical miles, the fishing gears that fishermen are using can only exploit fish stocks within two nautical miles.

Mr Abubakar el-Amoudy, chairman of the local environmental umbrella group, Save Lamu, has already filed a petition to the environment ministry complaining about the government’s intention to fast-track the port while ignoring the community’s concerns.

He cites various activities that will drive away the fish stock.

The National Environment Management Authority said it had asked for a full assessment because of concerns over breeding sites, fishing and landing sites, as well as disturbances of the sea floor due to dredging, vibrations, sediments and air quality.

According to Mr Ali, fishermen in Lamu harvest 15 tonnes of fish every three days, landed on three sites at Faza, Kivingitini and Kiunga. The fish is sold mainly in Mombasa and Malindi,

Mr Ali said that in Lamu East, fish is the main source of livelihood. Tourism in Lamu has also been experiencing serious challenges and cannot sufficiently sustain the region.

Although Lamu was made a Unesco World Heritage Site over a decade ago, it has not attracted an impressive numbers of visitors, save for those wishing to witness the annual cultural festival in November, due to poor infrastructure.

The director general of the National Museums of Kenya, Dr Idle Farah, in a recent interview, said that inaccessibility of the island has remained a major stumbling block to its success as a tourist destination.

Only two airlines serve the island, Fly 540 and Air Kenya, each with a single flight every day.

The Manda Airport on Manda island near Lamu, whose runway was recently extended, can only accommodate smaller planes.