It will be a rainy weekend in many parts of Kenya, the Met department says.
About 32 counties may report light rains in the afternoon and night.
Deputy Met director Joseph Thiong’o said these are Siaya, Kisumu, Homa Bay, Migori, Kisii, Nyamira, Trans Nzoia, Baringo, Uasin Gishu, Elgeyo Marakwet, Nandi, Nakuru, Narok, Kericho, Bomet, Kakamega, Vihiga, Bungoma, Busia and West Pokot counties.
“Rainfall is expected over the Highlands West of the Rift Valley, the Lake Victoria Basin and North-western Kenya,” he said in a statement.
The other counties that may be wet are Turkana, Samburu, Nyandarua, Laikipia, Nyeri, Kirinyaga, Murang'a, Kiambu, Meru, Embu, Tharaka and Nairobi counties.
There will also be strong winds over some parts of the Coast, North-eastern and North-western Kenya.
The rains are expected to help lower food commodities prices this year.
On Thursday, Timothy Njagi, a senior researcher from Tegemeo Institute, said food prices have already began to ease as the harvest period in different parts of the country starts.
“Consumers can expect easing of prices as the peak harvest period begins from August to November,” he said. He spoke to the Star on phone on Thursday.
United Grain Millers Association chairperson Kennedy Nyaga said a 90kg bag of maize is selling at between Sh2,800 and Sh3,200.
In Nairobi, maize is selling at between Sh3,050 and Sh3,100. In Nakuru, the 90kg bag is selling at Sh2,870, in Embu Sh3,000 and Sh3,000, Sh3,200 in Thika.
A bale of maize flour is retailing at between Sh1,150 to Sh1,360 in different areas.
A spot check by the Star showed that the price of different basic commodities has reduced.
A two-kilo packet of maize flour is selling at between Sh110 and Sh130 depending on the brand of unga in various supermarkets. This is a decrease of Sh5 to Sh7. Premium maize flour is selling at an average of Sh180.
A 2kg packet of sugar has also reduced to Sh300 from a high of Sh400 two months ago.
A bucket of Irish potatoes in different markets within Nairobi is selling at between Sh1,200 and Sh1,000. This is a decrease of more than Sh300 from the price it was selling at the beginning of the year.
Peter Kimani, a trader at Ruai market, said the prices have gone down in the last weeks due to the high supply of Irish potatoes in the market.
He, however, said the potatoes being sold in the market are immature as farmers are in a rush to sell their produce and make money.
“Farmers are struggling like most Kenyans due to the hard economic times, and there is also a high demand, hence the rush to sell the immature potatoes,” he told the Star on Thursday.
A kilo of onions in different markets in Nairobi is selling at between Sh100 and Sh70 from Sh120 and Sh150 a few months ago, while a kilo of tomatoes has also declined to an average of Sh90 from a high of Sh120 and above.
According to the Kenya Agricultural Market Information daily update on food commodity prices, a 50kg bag of Irish potatoes is retailing at Sh2,200 to Sh3,500 in different parts of the country.
A kilo of green maize is retailing at Sh20 to Sh50, a 50kg bag of kales/sukuma wiki is selling at Sh700 to a high of Sh2,000 in different parts of the country.
A kilo of spinach is going for as low as Sh20 to Sh70 while a crate of tomatoes in different parts of the country is selling at Sh3,840 to Sh6,400.
The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa food security outlook for May indicates that overall grain prices in the East African region remain generally lower than they were in the past 1-12 months. This is due to increased supplies from December/January harvests.