Senate Calls for Second Ferry to Relieve Mfangano Transport Crisis

The Senate Standing Committee on Roads, Transportation and Housing has urged the government to acquire a second public ferry for Lake Victoria in order to address a transport emergency that affects more than 30,000 people living on Mfangano Island and nearby islands.

Committee members want the ferry that is currently being built at Kisumu Shipyard to be placed on the Mbita-Mfangano route within six months and they are also seeking budgetary provision for an additional vessel in the 2027/2028 financial year.

The recommendation follows a petition submitted by Daniel Rakoro and other island residents on October 18, 2022, which highlighted the absence of dependable public transport linking Mfangano, Takawiri, Remba, Atego, Risi and Ringiti with the mainland.

Migori Senator Eddy Oketch, who chairs the committee, described ferry service as the “sole and critical link” connecting Mbita, Mfangano and the mainland, and warned that its lack has severely harmed island communities.

Petitioners explained that the suspension of the only private ferry in December 2021 forced residents to depend on expensive and unsafe private boats, raising the cost of living and exposing passengers to safety hazards.

The committee’s report noted that the transport shortfall has disrupted access to health care, education and markets, and has slowed the rollout of government development projects in the area.

Submissions were received from the petitioners, the National Treasury, the Ministry of Roads and Transport, the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) and the Kenya Maritime Authority (KMA).

The report expressed concern over delays in the ferry procurement programme, which was launched after a KSh300 million allocation in the 2022/2023 budget but now expects delivery of the vessel in July 2026.

It also highlighted that the project’s cost rose from the original KSh300 million to an estimated KSh1 billion after KPA assumed responsibility, with the final contract signed at KSh766 million excluding VAT.

A second ferry had been earmarked with a KSh300 million allocation in the 2023/2024 budget, but the purchase was not completed because of fiscal constraints.

The vessel under construction is intended to serve several Lake Victoria routes rather than being dedicated solely to the Mbita-Mfangano corridor, a factor the committee says could undermine service reliability.

The committee recommends that the Ministry of Roads and Transport, working with KPA and KMA, operationalise the new ferry and deploy it on the Mbita-Mfangano line within six months of the report’s tabling.

It further asks the National Treasury to ring-fence funds in the 2026/2027 budget to finish the Mbita and Sena piers and to refurbish the associated ramps and jetties at Mbita and Mfangano, with KPA overseeing the works and reporting back to the Senate within six months.

Finally, the committee calls on the Homa Bay County Government, together with the Ministry of Roads and Transport and the National Treasury, to provide sufficient financing and commence procurement of a second ferry in the 2027/2028 financial year, deeming the additional vessel essential for a reliable and sustainable public transport service and to end reliance on costly private boats.