Government Spokesman Isaac Mwaura speaking on January 29, 2025/HANDOUTThe government has acquired a consignment of 5.6 million bags of subsidized fertilisers, government Spokesman Isaac Mwaura has said.
Mwaura said the fertilisers will be available to farmers through the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB).
Speaking on Wednesday during a press conference, the government Spokesman said the move is in preparation for the upcoming rainfall season.
Mwaura said the initiative is aimed at making farm inputs affordable for enhanced agricultural productivity across the country.
This, he said, will ultimately contribute to food security in the country.
"To sustain this momentum, the government has, in preparation for the upcoming long rains, secured a consignment of 5.6 million bags of subsidized fertilisers, which will be available to farmers through the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB),” Mwaura said.
Mwaura added that the government is also rolling out a seed and seedlings programme to support farmers in cultivating high-yielding crops.
“I am glad to inform Kenyans that government initiatives geared towards improving our economy are bearing fruits,” he said.
“Top on these initiatives has been our investments in agriculture through the provement of the priority value chains, subsidising production materials such as fertilizers, certified seeds, and provision of other farm inputs which have now geared us closer to food security.”
Mwaura said that President William Ruto’s administration came to power at a time when food imports to Kenya had spiralled from 10 per cent to 17 per cent of goods imports.
“In essence, this increased the country’s vulnerability to global food supply shocks, and as a government, we had to come up with measures to turn around the situation by intentionally prioritizing agriculture as the number one pillar of the BETA plan.”
Mwaura said that faced with a situation where 54 per cent of household expenditure for Kenyans goes towards buying food, the government found it wise to work out modalities for lowering food prices.
“For instance, in 2022, we imported maize worth Sh10 billion, but thereafter we have become maize sufficient, saving ourselves the much-needed foreign exchange.”
The Spokesman said that the country now has enough maize stockpiles, with enough sugar and the prices of basic food items have steadily gone down.
