The nano island measures just 0.49-acres but is saidn to be home to some 1,000 people (Image: Getty)
A tiny island less than half an acre in size is home to 1,000 people and considered one of the most crowded communities in the world.
Migingo Island is on the northeastern side of Lake Victoria on the border between Uganda and Kenya and has been the subject of territorial disputes for decades.
It’s now co-managed by both countries, though tensions occasionally flare up over the football-pitch-sized islet, with locals branding it ’s “smallest war”.
A young fisherman previously told AFP that “sometimes there are tensions”, though generally people go about their business.
Dubai-based filmmaker recently made the tricky journey to the island by boat to make a short film about life there. He said he saw Kenyans and Ugandans “hanging out together”.
:
Migingo Island is on the northeastern side of Lake Victoria (Image: Getty)
Migingo became a major fishing hub (Image: Getty)
Migingo became a major fishing hub after a handful of fishermen hoping to catch Nile perch, also known as mbuta, decided to try their luck on the island, reports.
The loss of the once-booming sea life in Lake Victoria had been a major blow to communities living along its shores in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania, prompting locals to look for more reliable sources of fish.
Migingo was uninhabited at the time but gradually became known as a fertile fishing spot, and other fishermen came from Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Somalia, Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of Congo, as per the outlet.
Nile perch, which are plentiful in waters around Migingo, had previously only been popular locally. But they’ve since become a valuable commodity, appearing on menus at swanky British and French restaurants, and only heightening the draw of the island for fisherman.
[REPORT]
A striking mosaic of corrugated iron homes now covers the island (Image: Getty)
Hattab noted that the price of the fish had jumped by “50 percent in recent years and is estimated at $300 (£237) per kilogram in international markets”, as per .
A striking mosaic of corrugated iron homes now covers the island, rising and falling with the contours of the landscape.
The islet is said to be home to four bars, a hair salon and a brothel.
It also has its own police force, as well as small clinic where a nurse treats minor issues, though for more serious medical problems, inhabitants have to travel to the Kenyan mainland.