NPR
No Sex For Fish
How Women in A Fishing Village Are Fighting For Power
Chairwoman of the No Sex For Fish cooperative, stands by her fishing boat, Nduru Beach, Kisumu, Kenya, 2019. Patrick Higdon, whose name is on the boat, works for the charity World Connect, which gave the group a grant to provide boats for some of the local women.
Rose, Table banking meeting at Justine’s house, Nduru beach, Kisumu, Kenya, 2019.
From left to right: Rebbeccah, Alice, Lorine, Justine, Rose and Naomy, members of the No Sex For Fish cooperative, Nduru Beach in Kisumu, Lake Victoria, Kenya, 2019. Even though some of their boats are now grounded, these women are part of the pioneering effort to, as Chairwoman Justine puts it, "empower women to come out from this selling sex for fish."
Fishing nets need constant repair and are expensive to replace. After a fishing expedition, the crew lays its nets out on the shore to dry, Kisumu, Kenya, 2019.
Naomy with two of her children at home, Nduru beach, Kisumu, Kenya, 2019. When Naomy's boat was grounded, she says, "I was very discouraged. Because the money I was getting ... I was using to pay for my firstborn's school fees."
Fishing nets, Lake Victoria, Kisumu, Kenya, 2019.
Lorine, member of the No Sex For Fish cooperative, stands in her boat on Nduru Beach, Kisumu, Kenya, 2019. Lorine has one of the few No Sex For Fish boats that are still functioning in Nduru Beach.
Cheryl, Table banking meeting at Justine’s house, Nduru beach, Kisumu, Kenya, 2019.
Sangorota Beach, Lake Victoria, Kisumu, Kenya, 2019.
Justine, photographed at her house, Nduru beach, Kisumu, Kenya, 2019.
From left to right: Ester, Cornelia & Risper, Sangorota Beach, Kisumu, Kenya, 2019.
Danar, Table banking meeting at Justine’s house, Nduru beach, Kisumu, Kenya, 2019.
written by Rebecca Davis & Marc Silver
A tall woman with a strong gaze is standing by the shores of Lake Victoria. It's a busy morning. Boats are coming in full of fish: Nile perch, catfish, tiny silvery fish called omena — aka the Lake Victoria sardine.
She has her eye on one boat in particular. Like the others, it's made of wood. It's about 30 feet long. And it has a majestic white sail.
"That is the first boat which we started with for No Sex For Fish," she says.
The woman is Justine Adhiambo Obura. She's a big presence — full of energy and righteous indignation — in the village of Nduru Beach, population about 1,000. Wearing bold prints and colors, she strides along the beach as if she owns it.