The East African Community and Northern Corridor Development Cabinet Secretary (CS) Peter Munya has proposed the formation of an inter-state agency to manage Lake Victoria.
Speaking in Kisumu on Friday, Munya said that the agency will be charged with a role of helping to end perennial Lake Victoria border row between Kenya and Uganda.
The CS said East African member states should jointly create the agency, for joint management of the fresh water body.
“We know the challenges bedevilling the lake users. When we have one agency managing the lake, it is easier to control it, including dealing with illegal fishing,” Mr. Munya was quoted by the Nation.
“Such an agency would reduce inter-state conflicts whose casualties include Kenyan fishermen who face routine arrests by Ugandan security officers over claims of illegal fishing,” he added.
The Cabinet Secretary’s proposal was backed by Dr Evans Atera who is the Managing Director of the Lake Basin Development Authority.
Ugandan security officers have often arrested Kenyan fishermen along the shores of Lake Victoria.
The fishermen are mostly alleged to have trespassed into Ugandan waters in Lake Victoria.