Love and hate in the rice fields of Mwea

Rice farming in Kirinyaga is set for major changes as the government and donors pour in billions of shillings to improve production and farmers’ income.

The Mwea Irrigataion Scheme is Kenya’s biggest with 28,000 acres under rice.

This is set to increase to 40,000 acres, thanks to a Sh12 billion loan from the Japanese government and Sh5 billion from the Treasury invested under the Economic Stimulus Programme.

The Japanese money will be used to build a dam on River Thiba in Gichugu to provide more water for farmers.

Among the reforms planned are revisions in the colonial era irrigation law, described by farmers as oppressive and exploitative.

There has been a love-hate relationship between farmers and the managers of the scheme since 1954 when it was started by the forced labour of Mau Mau detainees under British supervision. The National Irrigation Board (NIB) took over after independence.

It is therefore not surprising that a scheme which started as a detention camp is full of stories of brutality, exploitation and revolt.

But now there is another story — one of hope.

The Japanese loan, says NIB General Manager Daniel Barasa, has a training component which will equip farmers with skills on producing more rice using less water.

“We know the history of this scheme has been problematic,’’ Mr Barasa, who has headed the board for three years, says, “but with the investment we are putting in, we can assure farmers of good days ahead. They will have enough water and skills to double production and thus improve their livelihoods.’’

On average an acre of land in Mwea produces 1,600 kilos of rice. With their four-acre parcels, farmers harvest 6,400 kilos per crop.

One kilo sells at a minimum of Sh50, meaning farmers earn Sh320,000 per crop minus cost of production, which is about Sh20,000 an acre.

The earnings will double when farmers plant two crops with more water being made available.

But Mwea has not always been a story of hope. Situated on the hot, parched plains of the semi-arid Mwea region, the scheme was started by the blood, sweat, tears and sometimes lives of Mau Mau detainees who were forced to dig the first water canals.

After their release, some of the survivors were settled on the scheme, growing rice under the supervision of the British.

Today, farmers are given four acres each for cultivation. They are then given a quarter-an- acre elsewhere on high ground to build homes.

Land for public utilities like schools, hospitals and cemeteries is also provided. An additional 1,000 acres is set aside for horticulture.

All the land is held in trust by Kirinyaga County Council and the NIB. Farmers are given licences to till the land which can be passed to their children.