Busia to host LREB’s 12th Summit

By Peter Ochieng

Busia County will host the 12th edition of the Lake Region Economic Block (LREB) Summit.

The Summit will be held from November 27 to November 29, 2024, under the theme, “Food Security in the Face of Climate Change: Building Partnerships towards Resilience among Communities in the Lake Region Economic Bloc (LREB).”

"I am happy to inform the people of the great County of Busia that we shall host the 12th Lake Region Economic Bloc (LREB) Summit between November 27th and 29th, 2024," announced Kisumu governor Anyang’ Nyong’o, who doubles up as LREB chairman.

The Summit seeks to bring together over 2,000 players from state and non-state actors, mainly in the food security sector to discuss and develop practicable solutions to climate change.

“It is, therefore, our humble duty to welcome all national government agencies operating within the Lake Victoria Basin, including our development partners, to join us as we take LREB and devolution to a new height,” added host governor, Paul Nyongesa Otuoma.

LREB brings together 14 counties in the Lake Region, one of the most densely populated regions of Kenya with over 15 million people.

The counties of Bomet, Bungoma, Busia, Kakamega, Homa Bay, Kericho, Kisii, Kisumu, Migori, Nandi, Nyamira, Siaya, Trans Nzoia and Vihiga, constitute about 25% of Kenya’s population in Kenya.

LREB also comprises the most cosmopolitan regions covering Western, Nyanza and Rift Valley regions of Kenya, with diverse ethnic communities.

The Summit will be held within a month after a successful inaugural LREB Water Security Conference which was held in Kisumu last week.

The conference sought to foster collaboration and partnership among stakeholders in the Lake Region, so as to address water-related challenges and promote sustainable water management practices.

It was themed “Accelerating Partnership and Collaboration on Water as a Shared Resource for Sustained Service Delivery in the Lake Region Economic Bloc.”