Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects: Handing Over Ceremony for the Project for the Construction of Munje Fish Banda
2015/5/7
| Title | Handing Over Ceremony for the Project for the Construction of Munje Fish Banda |
| Date | 7th May 2015 |
| Location | Munje Village, Diani Location, Msambweni District, Kwale County |
| Project title and Amount | The Project for the Construction of Munje Fish Banda USD 98,794 (Approx. 8M Ksh) |
| Attendance |
Around 100 participants
|
| Main activity | The Handing Over Ceremony of “The Project for the Construction of Munje Fish Banda” was held in Msambweni District, Kwale County and witnessed by among others, officials from the Embassy of Japan in Kenya. The grant contract for this project availed funds to be used for constructing a fish banda, installation of 10 solar chest freezers, 1 fish drying solar equipment, 1 toilet block and 2 water tanks. This project aimed to provide a way to keep fish in a fresh condition so to increase the incomes of the fishermen in Munje Village. There is no electricity in Munje Village, therefore, before the project was implemented, there were no methods to keep fish. The fishermen had to sell all the fish that was caught on that day before it got spoiled and when the fish sellers sometimes waited until late afternoon the fish would go bad leading to a decline in price. Therefore, this project aimed to provide a method to keep fish fresh, by installing the solar chest freezers so that the fishermen can sell the fish in a fair price. The solar chest freezers that were installed for this project were manufactured by a Japanese company called SHARP Corporation. SHARP has one of the most advanced technologies in the category of solar panels and freezers. One of the main characteristics of this solar chest freezer is that it can produce energy even on cloudy days or in the morning and evening, when the sunshine is not so strong. In addition, there are icepacks in the freezers so that it can maintain the low temperature even on rainy days and nighttime. Having solar chest freezers in an area like Munje Village, where there is no supply of electricity gives a big impact to their community. At the ceremony, Ambassador Terada in his speech explained the traditional Japanese food “SUSHI”, which is raw fish served on top of rice. He pointed out that people living in the inlands of Japan are able to enjoy sushi, because of the freezing technology. He stated that it is the same for Kenya. The freezing technology will deliver fresh fish to the inlands and that it may even change the food culture in Kenya. In addition, he emphasized that this exactly meets the food security policy of the Kenyan Government which is “value addition”. Lastly, he expressed his hope for the community to expand their market by using this freezing technology. The Ambassador also introduced the TICAD (Tokyo International Conference for African Development) Conference, a forum that will be held in Africa next year. He mentioned that Kenya is one of the candidates likely to host the conference and that he hopes the cooperation between Japan and Kenya will strengthen further. Mr. Mwaduga, Chief of Staff, thanked Japan for the support for Munje Fish Banda and promised that the Government will provide 26 fishing nets and 1 boat to the Munje Beach Management Unit. He closed his remarks by mentioning that he will be confirming again during the high season for fishing, to see if all the facilities are properly in use. |
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