A bitter territorial dispute has erupted along the shores of Lake Victoria in Nyatike Constituency, threatening to shatter years of peaceful coexistence between neighboring fishing communities at Kimambra and Kao beaches.
Hundreds of local fishermen, elders, and leaders from the Kanyawanga clan gathered at Kimambra Beach to voice their outrage over alleged land grabbing and the illegal re-demarcation of their beach management boundaries.
Addressing the gathering against the backdrop of lapping lake waves, elders recalled that the boundary separating Kimambra and Kao beaches was formally resolved and established as far back as 1993, with a definitive resolution reaffirmed in 2019.
The historical agreement was witnessed by elders from both the Kabuto and Kanyawanga clans, local administration including Area Chief Philip Opollo Orwa, and officials from the Sub-County and County Fisheries Department.
“In 1993, when we established the BMU, there was no dispute,” said one veteran Kimambra official who served from 1993 to 2010.
“And in 2019, government officials, chiefs, and clan elders sat together and marked the boundary clear from Kuja River stretching to the lake. Why is someone coming now to undo what was settled?”
At the center of the controversy is Mark Maloba, popularly known as “Mariko,” Chairperson of Kao Beach Management Unit and leader within the Migori County BMU Network; Barack Nyakoto, of the Sub-County Fisheries Office; and Denish Nyangwara, North Kadem/Got Kachola Ward Fisheries Officer.
Local residents accuse Maloba, alongside select county fisheries officers, of unilaterally attempting to push Kao Beach’s boundary deep into Kimambra territory.
“This land belonged to our forefathers!” argued a youthful fisherman during the tense meeting.
Extending the boundary
“Mariko was a child when these boundaries were recognized! How can he suddenly claim this shore is Kao Beach? Their goal is to push the boundary past those iron-sheet structures, right into our fishing grounds.”
Charles Ogweno Ngure, a long-time resident, echoed the community’s disbelief over the renewed claims.
“Mariko is younger than I, and I was born knowing this is Kimambra Beach. From 2019, I know here is Kimambra. Now recently, Mariko comes saying here is Kao… How does he know this is Kao? I was shocked!” adding that, “Mimi naona hii kitu, kama serikali hawezi kuchukua hatua, sisi kama watu wa Kanyawanga tutachukua hatua… Maanake kila kitu ilikuwa gazetted na serikali. Na hiyo serikali ndio inaonekana sasa inafanya ukorofi.”
Community leader Onado Nyango Wakinda warned that failure by county authorities to address the interference could trigger violence between fishermen on the water.
“We are asking the County Government Fisheries Department, DCC, and Chief to come out and resolve this matter completely, once and for all! Fishermen will kill each other!” he lamented.
Clan Secretary Shadrack Odero and elder Aloys Achola revealed that a formal petition has been dispatched to the Migori County Director of Fisheries and Blue Economy, as well as local security teams.
The petition urges county authorities to enforce the binding 2019 resolution immediately, warning that unaddressed encroachment could escalate into violent conflict along the lakefront.
Local community leaders are now appealing directly to the Migori County Government, the Deputy County Commissioner (DCC), and security agencies to intervene before the escalating crisis disrupts the peace and economic survival of thousands who depend on Lake Victoria’s waters.
