Shem Oirere

Shem Oirere

Contributing Editor reporting from Nairobi, Kenya

Shem Oirere is a Kenyan journalist who previously worked for daily newspapers as a general news correspondent, business reporter and sub-editor before turning to full-time freelancing. For the more than 20 years, he has covered various sectors of Africa’s economy including agriculture, food processing, and maritime industries. A graduate of the University of South Africa, he has traveled within and outside Africa covering various industry events that have a bearing on the continent’s economy on behalf of different international consumer and trade publications. He currently lives in Nairobi, Kenya.


Author Archive

Published on
September 18, 2024

Seven countries in southern Africa are collaborating with Penang, Malaysia-based aquatic food systems research organization WorldFish on a project to improve the quality of native tilapia in the region.

Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Madagascar, and Comoros – all members of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) regional economic bloc – are implementing the initiative, which aims to reduce the prevalence

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Published on
September 9, 2024

Somalia has unveiled new standard operating procedures (SOPs) for licensing tuna-fishing vessels operating within the country’s nearly 1.1-million-square-kilometer exclusive economic zone, and for domestic fishing companies seeking registration, as the government seeks to align its permit-issuance process with international maritime laws and sustainable fishing practices.

This government-driven licensing and registration plan, if

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Published on
September 3, 2024
Namibia's seafood exports increased in value by 1.2 percent year over year to NAD 4.1 billion (USD 231 million, EUR 207 million) in the first quarter of 2024. The exports, which comprised fish, crustaceans, molluscs, and other aquatic invertebrates, largely remained the same makeup of seafood… Read More
Published on
August 30, 2024

Kenya has slashed nearly 30 percent of its fiscal year 2024-2025 budget allocation for fisheries, aquaculture, and the blue economy after countrywide anti-tax protests in July forced the government to rework its original proposals on taxes, expenditures, borrowings, and revenue.

In response to the protests, Kenyan President William Ruto said through the withdrawal of the original plan, he had listened to Kenyans “who have said loudly that

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Published on
August 30, 2024

The South Africa Supreme Court of Appeals has upheld a ban implemented by the country’s Department of Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment (DFFE) on the use of drones used for fishing purposes in an attempt to protect the country’s marine fish populations.

In doing so, the court dismissed an appeal case filed against the DFFE by several business entities involved in the manufacture, import, market, and selling of angling

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Published on
August 27, 2024

Female seaweed farmers operating in the Western Indian Ocean will have access to private-sector financing through a new project that will support them in introducing farming technology, both boosting the resilience of their enterprises against the adverse impacts of climate change and increasing production of high-quality seaweed.

At least 25,000 female seaweed farmers in Kenya, Tanzania, and Mozambique will have access to the financing between

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Published on
August 15, 2024

Two United Nations agencies have been partnering together since 2019 to promote aquaculture in Africa as an effective way to reduce unemployment and underemployment among the continent’s youth.

Approximately 400 million youth in Africa are either unemployed or underemployed, according to Africa Union stats. To address this, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) teamed

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Published on
August 14, 2024
Three African seafood startups have been selected to receive a portion of a USD 550,000 (EUR 500,000) financing pool aimed at supporting climate-resilience solutions across the continent. Kenyan startup Samaking, which aims to decrease barriers to entry for aquaculturists in Africa; Madagascan… Read More
Published on
August 12, 2024
Madagascar recently unveiled a five-year national action plan outlining measures the country can take to increase fish production volumes in order to meet an anticipated rise in seafood demand from its growing population. The plan, launched by the southeast African country’s Ministry of… Read More
Published on
August 8, 2024
A dwindling supply of the ingredients needed to manufacture fish feed has Namibian aquaculture operations scrambling to find ways to attain feed fast enough to support the nation’s ambitious aquaculture growth plan. Namibia Deputy Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources Sylvia Makgone… Read More