Kitui Governor Julius Malombe’s pre-election pledge to revive the Kitui Agricultural show and trade fair has come to pass as the bonanza opens its gate to show goers this Thursday.
County CEC for Agriculture, Stephen Kimwele, told newsmen at the Ithookwe showgrounds Wednesday that all was set for the mother of all shows as preparations had been finalised.
“We have revived our Kitui Agricultural show and trade fair that has been dead for six years.
“I thank his excellency Governor Julius Malombe for making good the promise he made during the campaign that he will revive the show,” he said.
He added that as a CEC, he had the responsibility to fulfil the promises made by Malombe to the people of Kitui to revive the all-important agricultural show. He said the show opens its gates on Thursday and will run for three days.
“Everything is set. We are at 100 per cent in terms of preparedness. It will be the biggest show ever and all Kenyans are invited,” he said, adding that the show will be opened officially by the governor on Friday.
He said this year’s theme is 'Promoting climate smart agriculture and trade initiatives for sustainable food and nutrition security and economic growth' because the goal was mitigation against climate change.
“Why climate change? It is because climate change is real and we need to come up with measures that will mitigate its impact. Whatever we do must be geared towards resilience and improve production,” he said.
The CEC said during the three days of the show, farmers and locals will get insights and lessons on new farming technologies. “Entrepreneurs have the opportunity to come to the show and make money by selling their wares,” he added.
Kimwele also assured show goers of their security. He said there will be tight security. “We will have security officers in uniforms and others in civilian. We will have not less than 250 security officers patrolling the show grounds,” he said.