THE ongoing exercise to redraw the Uganda-Kenya border will involve drilling the Victoria lake-bed in order to set up floating boundary markers, an official in the Ministry of Lands has said.
The ministry spokesperson, Denis Obbo, on Tuesday said part of next year’s budget would go towards the installation of the floating boundary markers, known as water buoys.
“We are going to drill the lake-bed and study the water currents and waves to determine the type of buoys needed over the water. But before we do that, we have to carry out an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). This is because the drilled lakebed might disturb the fish spawning areas and we need to protect against that,” he said.
Recently, Fred Opolot, the government spokesperson, said the demarcation exercise would cost $2m (about sh4b).
Obbo said the EIA study would start next week after the establishment of the control points to be used to establish and build border pillars.
He said the team had completed the sensitisation of local communities in the border districts of Busia and Bugiri and on the islands.
The 1926 drawing of the Uganda-Kenya border was not physically done over Lake Victoria, according to Obbo. “It is an international requirement and we are doing it to make sure that Uganda’s borders are secured and clearly marked to avert any future disagreements,” he said.
He said the joint team led by Uganda’s director of land management, Justin Bwogi, and Kenya’s director of surveys Ephantus Murage, would complete work by July 30.
The demarcation exercise will establish the boundary along Kenya and Uganda, which stretches over 850 kilometres on land and into Lake Victoria. It follows a row between Uganda and Kenya over the ownership of Migingo Island.
