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| A general view of disputed Migingo island which is densely populated by residents fishing mainly for Nile perch in Lake Victoria on the border of Uganda and Kenya |
By Anita
Chepkoech, HOMA BAY Kenya
Kenya has
agreed to share the disputed Migingo Island with Uganda. This comes even as the
government maintains that the land is in Kenya.
Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Monica Juma
on Wednesday said they had signed a MoU with Ugandan authorities to enable
fishermen and other Lake Victoria users to access either side of the boundary.
What is left now is to set the modalities for
access management and sharing of resources.
“Kenyans should know that these boundaries are
shared by communities across the countries, and we have to find a way to make
them soft,” said the CS.
“My message to Kenyans is that we have their
interests at the top of our minds and this can be realised by reducing the
risks they face in accessing the trans-boundary resources,” she added.
Asked whether the agreement will define where
the island legally belongs, Ms Juma said: “Kenyans must know the territorial
integrity of the country will never be negotiated away.”
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