State pushes for local manufacture of life jackets

The state has launched a four-year project to support the local manufacturing of life jackets by youth and women through cottage industries.

Dubbed Elea project, it is aimed at boosting the manufacturing and availability of affordable and high quality life jackets to enhance maritime safety in the country by providing vocational skills training and gainful employment to 500 youth and women in selected pilot counties.

The beneficiaries will be supported to manufacture and sell 500,000 lifejackets locally to save the foreign currency used to import life jackets and to improve safety in the Kenyan waters.

The project comes at a time when the government through the Kenya Maritime Authority (KMA) is constructing a second major maritime search and rescue centre in Kisumu to address safety challenges on Lake Victoria.  

A total of Sh3.4 billion will be used to construct the main SAR centre and other small sites on the shores of that lake.

Through the life jackets programme, KMA is expected to implement the Government’s Bottom-up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA), the policy on Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) and promote the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals 1,4,5,8,10,13,16 and 17.

 “The country is using much required forex to import life jackets and other life-saving appliances yet tailoring is the basic skill required to manufacture lifejackets,” KMA said in a statement.

The project is being implemented in four phases with Phase one focusing on vocational skills training and prototype production through an already established collaboration framework with the National Industrial Training Authority (NITA).

In the partnership, KMA is sponsoring 500 youth and women to undertake vocational skills training and NITA certification in tailoring, embroidery and garment design to empower the beneficiaries to make lifejackets. 

The project commenced with a selection of youth and women from counties of Kilifi, Kwale, Lamu, Mombasa and Turkana counties.

The second phase of the project will consist of an industrial attachment of the beneficiaries of the project which will be coordinated by NITA followed by the third phase which involves the local manufacture of lifejackets.

“During phase three of Project Elea, KMA will require the trainee beneficiaries from each county to form Saccos through which KMA will assist in building up capacity to manufacture quality standard life jackets and oversee the manufacturing standards,” the statement continued.

The fourth phase will involve marketing and supply of life jackets where the maritime agency will assist beneficiary Saccos in publicising and supplying the product within the country and the East Africa region.

Beneficiaries of the project must have a minimum of Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) mean grade ‘D’, prior learning and experience in tailoring and must be aged between 18 and 25 years.

It is estimated that over 20,000 small vessels are operating and engaged in socio-economic activities along the Kenyan coast and territorial waters such as Lakes Victoria, Turkana, Naivasha, Baringo and Nakuru. 

Citizens also operate boats in navigable rivers such as Tana and Nyando and in some major dams such as Masinga. 

Over the years, vessel accidents due to sea or lake perils and human error have led to loss of life through drowning among other causes. Drowning deaths could be avoidable if vessel coxswains, passengers or fishers wore life jackets.

Marine casualties are a major challenge in upholding maritime safety on Kenyan navigable waters despite KMA’s relentless efforts to ensure boat owners and operators comply with vessel and passenger safety regulations. 

Vessel owners cite both the unavailability of standard quality life jackets in the local market and the high cost of acquiring quality imported life jackets.

KMA’s statutory functions include enforcing the safety of shipping including compliance with ships and passengers’ safety standards, conducting regular inspection of vessels to ensure maritime safety and regulating shipping in the inland waterways including the safety of navigation.