Why the fishermen of Turkana wallow in poverty

By Isaiah Lucheli and Vincent Bartoo

It is better to teach a man how to fish than to give him fish, so goes the saying that advocates self-reliance.

But in Lake Turkana, the story of a collapsed fishing co-operative society would seem to go counter to the wise saying. Far from make fishermen self-reliant, the co-operative ran aground and robbed them of the power to earn a living.

Fishing in Lake Turkana used to provide an alternative source of income to pastoralists, but the collapse of the Turkana Fishermen Co-operative Society (TFCS) shattered their dreams.

The fishermen invested the income from fish sales to buy livestock lost through ravaging drought or cattle rustling. This played an important role in restocking.

But since the collapse of the co-operative, middlemen have exploited fishermen, leading to an increase in poverty and a drop in fish harvests.

By 1985, it was estimated that more than 59,263 people directly benefited from the local fish industry, while the co-operative had a membership of more than 4,500 with its headquarters at Kalokol.

There was rapid population growth around the lake due to the booming business, but the collapse of TFCS has led to high unemployment and poverty.

Low quantity

At its peak in the early 1980s, TFCS employed more than 20,000 people and sold over 10,000 tonnes of fish annually.

However, since its collapse, the quantity of fish sold has dropped to below 4,000 tonnes, which has an average value of Sh75 million.

Mr John Ekwam, a resident of Turkana, says fishing in the lake was the second major activity to livestock and supported the local economy.

"Since its establishment in 1965, the co-operative society played a key role in the fishing industry. It created employment and safe-guarded fishermen against exploitation by unscrupulous traders," says Ekwam.

From a whooping 20,000 active commercial fishermen in the early 1980s, the number reduced to about 2,000 between 2001 and 2004.

Ekwam notes that since the collapse of the co-operative, businessmen took advantage of fishermen and offered low prices.

"When the co-operative was active, fish harvested in the lake was sold through it. No trader was allowed to bypass the society and buy fish from the fishermen," he explained.

However, since the collapse and the liberalisation of the market, traders started buying fish and their products from fishermen.

"It all started in 1999 when the society was unable to pay fishermen for their deliveries," he says.

The quality of fish from Lake Turkana has been low due to poor handling and lack of preservation facilities.

Bad roads

The sun-dried fish is transported to Kalokol on hired hand carts at a cost of Sh200 for a four-kilometre trip. Trade at the beaches has been hampered due to poor road network.

Since the collapse of the society, marketing of fish products has become the biggest challenge in Turkana because of the extreme heat and long distances to markets. The society was formed in 1968 and registered in 1971. The main objective was to improve fishing technology, processing and marketing.

From 1968 to 1991 the society received technical and financial assistance from the Norwegian government.

According to the Turkana District Co-operative Officer (DCO) Rogers Sikulu, through the support of Norway the society constructed a fish processing plant, an office block, residential houses, an ice making plant, bought cargo and fishing boats, nets for members and solar panels.

But in 1983, adds Mr Sikulu, the society started experiencing management and governance problems, which led to the appointment of a management commission.

"The commission was disbanded in 1987 and the society reverted to the management committee, but serious financial problems continued," he says.

Sikulu says things worsened for the society in 1992 when the Norwegian government withdrew its support and the co-operative had to meet its cost of operations. By 1995, the society was in serious financial trouble and it was unable to pay spot cash for fish deliveries by fishermen, forcing them to sell them to the middlemen.

The DCO noted that the management problems the society was experiencing were due to the calibre of leaders and high illiteracy levels.

"To improve leadership, a succession management strategy should be put in place. An Annual General Meeting would then be held in the course of the year and put in place a competent management committee followed by recruitment of a qualified management team," he says.

The Turkana District Fisheries Officer Jared Agano blames the heavy losses incurred by the fishermen on the poor road network.

"Todonyang is 125 kilometres from Kalokol and the road network is in a bad state. The prevailing high temperatures has also made matters worse for the fishermen," says Mr Agano.

Agano adds that insecurity in the rich fishing grounds of Todonyang, Hilaret and Omo delta areas has greatly affected fishing activities.

New strategies

He added that it was important to harmonise environmental issues that could be able to make the venture profitable and sustainable.

During his visit to the area, Fisheries Minister Paul Otuoma explained that the Government was working on modalities of reviving the fishing industry in the region.

Dr Otuoma said the Government would address insecurity for fishermen by providing security patrols on the lake.

The revival of the co-operative is seen as the only hope of improving the economy of the area.