The Government has received Sh1billion from the World Bank to help in the harnessing and developing of the blue economy.
According to the East African Community Principal Secretary Kevit Desai who disclosed the information said, there is increased attention towards the blue economy brought about by the increasing pressure on land resources that are leading investors to underutilized water resources.
“People are starting to look towards the large portion of the earth surface that’s covered by water, which previously seemed inaccessible,” he told The Standard during a tour in Kisumu yesterday.
Adding on the same, the PS said that the Government is seeking ways to build new technology to help in the exploitation of Lake Victoria’s potential.
The move by World Bank came after a meeting of experts, government officials, environmental activists, policymakers and academics converged in Nairobi, Kenya, for the Sustainable Blue Economy Conference last year November.
Africa has 38 coastal and island states and a coastline of over 47,000 km, and hence presents an enormous opportunity for the continent to develop the sectors typically associated with the blue economy.
Notably, the Blue Economy can play a significant role in a country’s structural transformation, sustainable economic progress, and social development.
The largest sectors of the current African aquatic and ocean-based economy are fisheries, aquaculture, tourism, transport, ports, coastal mining, and energy.
