Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mwangi Kiunjuri has hit out at Nyanza leaders for silently watching as the operations at the Kisumu Port stagnated over the years.
Built by the British colonialists, the port had stopped its operations before the national government stepped in and rehabilitated it at a cost of Sh3 billion.
The CS has scolded the leaders for failing to intervene earlier, saying that the collapse of the port has badly affected the economy of the Nyanza region.
He said that the group should be ashamed of itself for failing to steer the port to success and helping in restoring its glory, after inheriting it from the colonialists.
"When did the rain start beating us? Why are we gathered here today to discuss a port that the colonial government was able to build from scratch in the 1950s? We should be ashamed of ourselves. The port was operational at one time. What happened?” he said.
He spoke during the final day of the two-day Lake Region Blue Economy Conference which kicked off on Thursday.
He said that the government has identified the port as a key development opportunity, but decried the fall of the fish population in Lake Victoria over the last eight years.
CS Kiunjuri stressed on the need for the leaders to put their house in order and work to reclaim the region's lost glory as the hub of fishing in the nation.
“I was discussing the issue of reviving aquaculture with Anyang’ Nyong’o and he told me we need Sh14 billion to revive that sub-sector. I asked him a simple question: In 2011, we were producing 65,000 tonnes of fish, but now that has declined to 12,000 tonnes. The port is in a bad state. Some countries have built a port like this one which can last for over 100 years. We need to put our house in order," he added.
The port is expected to be launched by President Uhuru Kenyatta who was initially expected to unveil it on Friday.