Amid fears the coronavirus pandemic will push the global economy deep into recession there's one group that's received an unexpected boost - fishermen at Kenya's Lake Victoria.

Cheaper Chinese imports have dried up and wary customers are also turning away from Chinese fish.

That's good news for fisherman like Maurice Misodhi, based out of Dunga Bay near Kisumu.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) FISHERMAN AND ASSISTANT CHAIRMAN AT BEACH MANAGEMENT UNIT AT DUNGA BEACH, MAURICE MISODHI, SAYING:

"The fishermen are really now smiling at the Lake Victoria region because we are receiving more visitors. Right now when you see Dunga, Dunga is really crowded with a lot of the residents of Kisumu coming to buy the fresh fish because people fear the Chinese boxed fish due to the coronavirus."

Kenya bought $23.2m of frozen fish from China in 2018 and the local industry has long complained that the cheaper imports have strangled their trade.

Previously, fishermen at Dunga Bay would sell around half their catch - eating, bartering or giving away the rest.

Now they're reportedly selling 90% and prices have also shot up.