Lodwar, Kenya, Sept 29, 2026 (Public Communication and Media Relations)

The Deputy Governor Dr. John Erus hosted the Netherlands Ambassador to Kenya, Bakker Hendrik Jan, for talks focused on unlocking the economic potential of Lake Turkana’s fisheries.

The meeting, held in Lodwar, was also attended by officials from the UN World Food Programme (WFP) and UNESCO.

Dr. Erus said the engagement comes at a time when the County Government has met with sector players in the fishing industry and asked them to scale up efforts to strengthen the value chain and reduce losses.

Pointing to surveys and research by various bodies indicating Lake Turkana directly supports more than 10,000 people across hundreds of landing sites, Dr. Erus said that a time had come to start treating the lake as a livelihood hub by cultivating it’s economic viability and tapping into its transport and tourism potential.

According to the DG, existing investments by WFP and other partners are beginning to show positive results for fishing communities, but the sector remains underexploited.

“If fully unlocked, the county estimates that the lake can generate up to one billion shillings in revenue for the County, the fishermen and all the people involved in the related value chain such as tourism, lake transport and the skilled labour market,” Erus said.

He urged the international community and development partners to sustain investments in fisheries, food systems, livelihood programs and refugee affairs to help the county create wealth and reduce poverty as envisioned in the upcoming generation of the County Integrated Development Plan.

Additionally, the discussions also covered measures to reduce post-harvest losses, support to Lodwar Municipality, inclusion of Turkana in the call for papers for provision of technical works, utilisation of research data on Lake Turkana and the formation of local-level project implementation units.

On refugee management, Dr. Erus said hosting counties should be placed at the centre of interventions and receive direct funding.

Turkana hosts the Kakuma Refugee Campand Kalobeyei Settlement while Garissa hosts Dadaab Refugee Camp, Kenya’s two largest refugee camps and home to hundreds of thousands of refugees.

Ambassador Jan said his team was in Turkana on a learning mission to assess projects implemented with support from the Netherlands.

“We have picked valuable lessons and received credible input from the county that could assist in shaping future support and interventions,” he said.

The envoy was accompanied by Van Veen Jelmer (First Secretary for Water, Food Security and Climate change), Hannah Muroki (Policy Officer for Climate) and WFP’s Claudia Ah Poe and Sarah Ayodi.

Yhw County Government representatives also included Ambassador Dr. Richard Ekai (County Secretary), Chief Officers Peter Ikaru (Fisheries and Aquaculture), Moses Korea (Office of the Governor), Directors Peter Lomauge (Protocol), Mike Aupe (Partnerships and Donor Coordination), Peterson Erus (Administration) among others.