A PLEA FOR JUSTICE: SAVE YALA SWAMP FOR YIMBO AND ALEGO COMMUNITIES

Yala Swamp which is the lifeline for Yimbo and Alego communities is about to be allocated to an investor for 66 years. The County Government of Siaya has asked the National Land Commission (NLC) and they have approved. We have gone to the Environment and Land Court to challenge the NLC decision, but the court has turned us away because of lack of authority in law to reverse NLC decisions. We are frustrated because going to court is very costly. President William Ruto proved to know about the matter during his campaigns. The government should therefore provide a long lasting solution to rescue the vulnerable communities from the threats directed to their land rights.

Yala Swamp was reclaimed in 1970 and earmarked for organised resettlement of Yimbo and Alego communities who were displaced by flooding. In 2006, a phase 2 was reclaimed and earmarked for agriculture. The people of Yala Swamp are currently residing in non-arable areas that have failed to produce food even during the long rainy seasons of the year. The whole of Siaya County and it's environs have been relying on food items strenuously produced by people who have been disenfranchised and made hopeless each and every year.

In this tough times and economic meltdown Kenya is facing, our country can only thrive if farming communities are committed to adequate food production, adopting commercialization in agriculture, and promoting value chain actors in every segment to create opportunities for the jobless.

We can use these existing community lands to create havens for sustainable agriculture. Additionally, youth and women who own less than 10% of our lands can be mobilised into community entities and assisted to register portions of community and public lands for economic benefits.