President William Ruto has kicked off his five-day tour of Western region with a bag of goodies for the region, promising to take development projects to all parts of the country regardless of political affiliation.
The visit, which began in Busia on Saturday August 27, will also take him to Bungoma, Vihiga and Kakamega counties.
Some of the projects the President is expected to inaugurate during the tour include the 220-unit Milimani Estate affordable housing project in Lurambi, Kakamega County, the construction of the Bungoma County Aggregation and Industrial Park in Bungoma County and a tour of the Nzoia Sugar Company.
In Busia, he commissioned the Sh130 million Bukalama Fish Landing Site in Budalang'i on Saturday before handing over the Sh100 million Male Surgical Ward at Busia County Teaching and Referral Hospital built by the Kenya Defence Force (KDF).
President Ruto said his government was working to integrate the blue economy into the government's plans to improve food security and provide employment opportunities, promising nine more fish landing sites in Busia, Kisumu and Siaya counties bordering Lake Victoria and nine more in the coastal region along the Indian Ocean.
"We are establishing more fish landing sites at Bumbe in Funyula, Lwanda K'Otieno in Bondo and others in counties along the Lake Victoria and Indian Ocean coastlines," said President Ruto.
He said if well managed, the blue economy has the potential to add Sh120 billion annually to the country's revenue base.
To address the challenges faced by fishermen in Lake Victoria, Dr Ruto said he had held talks with President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda and agreed to convene a meeting of senior security officials from Kenya and Uganda to discuss the rampant cases of arrests, harassment and assaults by Ugandan soldiers on Kenyan fishermen.
"Mr Museveni is my friend and I have been talking to him about the safety of our fishermen in Lake Victoria. We are going to have a big meeting with our security officials and those from Uganda to put an end to the water boundary issues. Already, incidents of harassment in the lake are decreasing, but we want the harassment to stop," he said.
This followed outcries from Busia Governor Paul Otuoma who said ten Kenyan fishermen were still being held in Uganda and called on President Ruto to intervene for their release.
The county boss said he had merged his county-based revitalisation agenda with President Ruto's bottom-up agenda to boost Busia's economy, which had stalled since the onset of devolution.
"I realised that politics was over and it was up to me to work with other leaders to change the face of Busia. That is why after I was elected on the ODM ticket, I went to work with the President to fight extreme poverty in the county and turn it into productivity," Mr Otuoma said.
He said although the water in Lake Victoria comes from rivers within Kenya, the Ugandan government claims ownership of most of the lake.
President Ruto said the government will construct a new patrol base unit for Coast Guard officers at a cost of Sh80 million and provide additional security boats to ensure the safety of Kenyan fishermen and their equipment in Lake Victoria.
In addition, President Ruto said the government will boost fish stocks in the lake by constructing a Sh1 billion fish hatchery in Kabonyo in Siaya County in addition to those in Sagana, Kiganjo in Nyeri and Shimoni in Kwale to ensure sustainable exploitation of the blue economy.
He said the government was working with Canada to improve the economy along the water bodies to get more women involved in the blue economy.
He said the government has ordered more cotton seeds to be distributed to farmers in addition to the 17,000 tonnes already donated by the government.
Other seeds on their way to farmers in Busia are sunflower (200,000 tonnes) and quality maize seeds and fertiliser to boost crop production to power the Nasewa Industrial Park and address the food security situation in the county.
The President directed officials under the National Government Administration Officers (NGAO) to ensure that government subsidised fertiliser is sold at sub-county offices to reduce costs incurred by farmers who travel long distances to access the National Cereals and Produce Boards (NCPB).
To ensure that Kenya does not import rice, furniture, fish, cement and steel, which he said can be produced locally, the Head of State said his administration will plant an additional 20,000 hectares of rice, restock water sources with fingerlings and plant more trees to boost and sustain local production.
He took a swipe at Busia Senator Okiya Omutata, accusing him of derailing the implementation of the Finance Bill, which he said was meant to fund development projects and cushion Kenyans from the economic crisis.
Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua called on Azimio governors and MPs to work with President Ruto, saying he holds the knife that divides the national cake.
He urged the people of Busia to change their political stance and work with the government to achieve more development.
He said under the Kenya Kwanza leadership, no part of the country will be left out in terms of development.
"We may have political differences, but in terms of development, every Kenyan deserves to be served equally. And that is what we are doing," the DP said.
His sentiments were echoed by Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, who extended an olive branch to Mr Wanjala, inviting him and other Azimio leaders to work with President Ruto.
"President Ruto's government is all inclusive. We are looking at which county or individual was against us. We are working with everyone with the intention of developing every part of the country," he said.
