Climate Smart Fishermen
Growing up in Rusinga Island, Kenya, my family and I enjoyed the majestic views of the enormous Lake Victoria, called “Nam Lolwe” in our language, Luo. When the sun set, the lake came to life in a whole new form, with small yellow lights popping up across the water. The glowing bulbs appear to represent a town in the distance for a first-time visitor to the island - but in the morning, this town is nowhere to be seen. This is why we call it the ‘Ghost Town.’
Rusinga Island is one of the many scattered islands along the Kenyan shores of Lake Victoria, Africa’s largest lake which is shared by Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania in East Africa. The fishing sector is hugely important for people’s livelihoods on the island. Most households in the communities mainly depend on fishing for their income.
In the night, this sea of lights - the so-called ‘Ghost Town’ - appears as a result of fishing the delicious Silver cyprinid (Rastrineobola argentea), locally known as ‘Omena’ by my brothers, uncles and neighbours.
This fish, also called the Lake Victoria sardine, grows only to about 3.5 inches long. They stay close to the bottom in the daytime and rise up toward the surface at night. They are caught at night using lights, then sun-dried, sold, and distributed through the southern East African region for human consumption and as chicken feed. The fish is attracted to light and only fished during the darkest nights of the month.
