Kisumu is set to have a fish auction in a bid to improve prices of the commodity in the county, governor Jack Ranguma has said.
This is one of the of things Ranguma's government has lined up in support of the local fishing industry.
“I have been engaging the East Africa Community’s Lake Basin Commission with a view to setting up a fish auction in Kisumu to improve prices and returns to fishermen,” said the governor.
He added that he is in talks with the national government to speed up completion of the Kisumu-Kericho-Mau Summit road, the new cargo section of the Kisumu International Airport, the upgrading of the Kisumu Dry Dock, with a vision that that fisheries products will be some of the main exports out of Kisumu by road, rail, water and air.
Apart from the fish auction, other activities the county is undertaking are the improvement of infrastructure that supports the fisheries sub sector, including opening up and graveling of dilapidated rural roads linking the beaches to markets.
Others are through provision of electricity supply and lighting of local beaches and fish markets, provision of cold storage cooler boxes to the beaches, establishment and improvement of well-equipped and staffed health facilities at or near the beaches.
Others are flood mitigation along the fish landing beaches and strengthening of cooperative movement among the fisher folk.