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The government has warned that it will not hesitate to take action against foreign vessels breaching the National Environment Management Authority (Nema) regulations, and the Merchant Shipping Act, among other maritime related laws by polluting Kenyan waters with marine waste.

Shipping and Maritime Principal Secretary Shadrack Mwadime expressed concerns that some foreign vessels approaching the Kenyan coast have been discharging maritime waste in the ocean in open disregard of stipulated maritime laws.

Noting the government currently considers the blue economy as the next major frontier, Mwadime said there is a deliberate effort by the government to keep pollution at bay by enforcing the available laws.
“Vessels which recklessly discharge oil at sea have been posing threat to aquatic life and this we seek to stop by enforcing the available laws,” the PS said.

Kenya Maritime Authority Chairman Hamisi Mwaguya reemphasised the authority’s commitment in ensuring all conventions Kenya has ratified and signed with the International Maritime Organisation are implemented and enforced to the fullest.