DNK International By Kennedy Epalat,Amagor.
The Busia County government has lifted the suspension imposed on the operations of a godown cum buying center for Hides $ Skins situated at Okuleu village near Amagoro town in Teso North Sub County.
The facility that has been operating for the last four months was suspended last week in a letter signed by the Teso North Sub County Administrator Silas Juma subject to a public participation forum for the community that is set to benefit from the project. The construction of the project had been done without the public participation component as required by law. This is necessary for the community to give their views on the suitability of the venue for the godown cum buying center for Hides and Skins. The suspension follows a petition by a section of the community over what they claimed was the emission of a foul smell from the site. This prompted the County government in consultation with the national government to suspend all activities until public participation is carried out as required under the law.
Thursday 22nd, October 2026, a day before the deadline issued by the Sub County Administrator, the Okuleu village community turned out in large numbers for the public participation exercise presided over by officers from the National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) and an environmental expert licensed by NEMA to conduct Environmental Impact Assessment sensitization in the presence of all stakeholders including the national and County administrations.
Private Environmental Expert Justus Amayo took participants through the entire process preceding the construction of any public or private project including roads and building infrastructure. In the case of the godown cum buying center for Hides and Skins, Mr Amayo noted that it is critical for the investor to put in place mechanisms for waste management, public health and sanitation, occupational health and safety, and chemical exposure to staff among other mitigation measures. He underscored the importance of prioritizing the local community in the employment opportunities available.
According to the investor, Mr Ramadhan Karani, they buy already dried Hides and Skins but process them further to meet public health standards before baling and transporting them using containers to Nairobi at the Malaba railway station. He said their source of hides and Skins are slaughter houses in Kakamega, Siaya, Homabay, Bungoma and Busia counties, noting that this is the only such facility in Western Kenya. After delivery to Malaba railway station, the cargo is then delivered to companies in Nairobi and other areas including Bata shoe company for value addition.
Prior to the transportation by railway, the containers are made tamper free by Custom seals. “So our work ends after loading into the railway container. Other investors take it over from there, to complete the process of value addition like manufacturing shoes, leather jackets, leather bags. But we also have a vision. After working for sometime, we want to venture into tanning and production of shoes and other leather products here in Okuleu village which will generate more employment opportunities for the people of Teso North. We will embark on this project two to three years from now”, says Karani. He said that subject to the importation of the requisite machinery from China, the company will carry out its own value addition. He said that at the moment, they will continue baling and transporting the Hides and Skins to feed other companies which have the necessary machinery for the value addition.
Mr Karani further disclosed plans to start a water project. “This is only the beginning for more things to come. Once we have stabilized, we shall start a water project which together with this Hides and Skins project, will open up more employment opportunities for the youths. We need a trailer driver and his or her turn boy who will be transporting products from here. We will also need a forklift operator because loading goods requires an experienced operator. So job opportunities will come as we proceed”, he said.
Karani however admitted that as an investor, he was unaware about how NEMA laws operate. He explained that lack of knowledge prompted him to visit NEMA offices in Busia to seek clarity. ” We were extremely glad by the response of NEMA who advised that they should have conducted public participation prior to the construction so that the community is made aware of the project that is meant to benefit them”. The government had given the investor two weeks’ ultimatum to conduct the exercise. The deadline expired on Friday 23rd October 2027.
During the public participation exercise, an environmental expert Justus Amayo recommended mitigation measures against issues raised by the petitioners especially on the alleged stench from the facility. He cited some of the mitigation measures including a timely collection of Hides and Skins, saying there must be time frames within which the Hides and Skins should remain in the godown, adequate preservation using chemicals, proper storage and ventilation. Other measures include prompt removal of rejected Hides”. He emphasized that these measures will ensure that the community is benefiting from the project without being disadvantaged. He further called for proper disposal of waste water pollution without diverting to private land.
Community members who turned up at the public participation forum heaped praise on the investor for choosing the village for the project, saying it has helped arrest the challenge of unemployment which was the cause of crime in the area and other surrounding villages. They said that through the employment of youths from the area, crime and sand harvesting has reduced drastically, noting that sand harvesting had immensely contributed to environmental degradation through gully erosion.
While making his contribution, a local resident David Inyaa Papa disputed claims by a member of the community in his petition to the authorities in Busia, that the project has caused discomfort through emission of foul smell/odour. ” There are those saying that this place stinks. I have lived in Limuru in 1981 near Bata shoe company where the stench from the factory combined with that attributed to the high number of donkeys is unbearable. But nobody wanted the company to fold. So whoever is opposed to this investment is just intent on spoiling for other people. The withdrawal of this project from this village will only make the youthful population idle and revert to thefts and other forms of criminal activities. I feel that this company should remain here forever. When you see me dressed the way I’m, it’s because of this company. I was the first person to be employed here. After I left here, I brought my two children from Nairobi who now work here. Therefore those opposed to this investment are employed elsewhere, they eat well and now want other families to suffer”, he said.
A teacher, Patrick Barasa, thanked the organizers for convening a public participation forum. He specifically thanked the investor for the project saying that Okuleu village has been neglected for a long time by successive members of the County Assembly and members of Parliament. “Okuleu has always been bypassed when it comes to development projects. Okuleu Comprehensive school was supposed to be a boarding school, a water tank was supposed to be installed in Okuleu, a Market was supposed to be constructed here, but all that did not materialize. Even the area MCA and Member of Parliament have never thought about the challenges facing the people of Okuleu and that is why we don’t even have a Chief’s Office”, he fumed. On the issue of pollution, Barasa urged the community to begin a discussion on how to reduce the odour as advised by the environmental expert. He said that even the Webuye based Pan Paper (Now Rai Paper) used to emit a foul smell, but changed the lives of people. He said since the construction of the project, electricity is now available for the community and not to just a few privileged individuals, courtesy of the investor. “Okuleu village has in the past been blamed over cases of muggings, thefts and sand harvesting. All that was due to unemployment among the youths”.
Francis Ikaal told the participants that he had worked in Thika where a tanning company (Bulleys Tanneries) used to emit a foul smell but people never complained because it was a source of employment for hundreds of people.
The area Village Administrator Alex Ekirapa urged the investor Ramadhan Karani who was accompanied by his investment partner Mr Mohamed Abdi to comply with all government policies, noting that this will guarantee their safety and protection by the government. Mr Ekirapa who is visually impaired appealed to the community to support the project to enable it grow and attract other industries to the area. He thanked NEMA for educating the community. ” I appeal to other investors to come to Okuleu village so that employment opportunities are created for more youths and create wealth in the process. Malaba, Amagoro town and Kocholya can benefit a lot from what we do in Okuleu”, he said.
Busia County Environment officer Brian Marono appreciated the investor for initiating a project that will go a long way into supporting the community with Water, electricity and employment. He encouraged the public to supply the requisite products to make the industry grow like any other companies in Nairobi and elsewhere in the country as alluded to by some participants during their presentation.
Okuleu Location Chief Patrick Omekede reminded the investor of the need to contact the administration whenever they want to set up a project so that the government is fully updated. This he noted will ensure that the investor enjoys full protection from any eventualities. He said that the current investor should have prioritized public participation as a key component in setting up an industry at Okuleu. He however urged the community to embrace development initiatives by investors as it will help change people’s lives for the better. Chief Omekede advised the investor and the community at large to adhere to the advice from the environmental expert and the NEMA official to ensure that stakeholders are aware about their responsibilities.. The Administrator noted that the public participation forum was necessitated by a petition by a section of villagers opposed to the project citing its opaqueness. He however exonerated the petitioners from blame. ” But let’s not blame them. They were right. They have helped us know what was going on. Some people were not aware. They generated this public participation and we have learned a lot from here. Nobody is opposed to development. We are all in agreement as most of you have alluded to that we have had an upsurge of crime in the past, sand harvesting and other social ills. Now that this project is here, it will help cure all those negative effects of unemployment”. He called on parents to invest in the education of their children describing it as the only equalizer in poverty eradication.
[Daily News Kenya-International@October 23,2026]
