Fishing activities in Lake Victoria, Kenya side
 
Some fishermen in Nyanza and Western regions of Kenya use table tennis nets to do illegal fishing in Lake Victoria, an official has revealed.
The chairman of Kenya Nile Basin Discourse Forum (KNDF) an affiliate of Save Fish in Lake Victoria Association; Joseph Odongo said the nets are exported to Uganda from Korea before being bought by fishermen from Kenya for fishing in the Lake.

Mr. Odongo said most fishermen prefer the illegal table tennis nets because they can last for more than 20 years before being torn.
He asked Kenya Bureau of Standards not to allow Asian made undersized nets and the imported table tennis ball nets from Korea into the country. He urges NGOs and the government to assist the community to protect the fishing industry in Lake Victoria.

He said the substandard nets have adversely affected fish production. in 1998, a total of 500,000 tonnes of fish was being produced from the Lake but has significantly decreased to 40,000 tonnes at the moment. 
He said the association has issued a notice to all fishermen and members of the public in Budalang’i constituency that anyone who will be found with illegal fishing gear in Lake Victoria will be arrested and prosecuted.

To protect the breeding zone the association fixes indicators in fish breeding zones 1 km from the shores as no fishing zones.
Odongo said that in the next six months, they are going to segregate fishing methods by separating bait fishing to avoid controversies.

He said that the association wants the county government to purchase recommended modern fishing nets for fishermen in Budalang’i constituency in order to curb the menace which has depleted fish in the lake.