Private sector key in deepening fertiliser use

Farmers in Nandi County check maize seeds in a planter during a past planting season. Studies show that fertiliser accounts for about 30 per cent of the cost of crop production and has the potential to increase yields by between 50-75 percent. FILE PHOTO | JARED NYATAYA | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Today, use of fertiliser has become inevitable because most soils are suffering ill health due to over cultivation of a single crop.
  • Too much fertiliser will affect the crop and little amount will not help.
  • Applying fertiliser late will not help as the crops have already been affected.
  • Use of e-voucher system to distribute the input also aids in eliminating challenges that include adulteration, and the partnering of private sector players with county governments would help to deepen general fertiliser use.

Soils naturally contain many nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorous, calcium, and potassium, which allow plants to grow in a healthy way.

But when these nutrients are missing or are in short supply, plants suffer leading to poor harvest.

Today, however, use of fertiliser has become inevitable because most soils are suffering ill health due to over cultivation of a single crop.

No farmer in the country currently can boost of good harvest without the use of fertiliser.

Studies show that fertiliser accounts for about 30 per cent of the cost of production and has the potential to increase yields by between 50-75 percent.

But its application must be done right if yields are to rise. A farmer must, therefore, know the nutrients crops need, the right rate and the fertiliser needed.

Too much fertiliser will affect the crop and little amount will not help. There is also the right time, which depends on stages of the crop’s growth and seasons.

Applying fertiliser late will not help as the crops have already been affected. Using it at the early stages works well.

Similarly, putting fertiliser at the wrong place doesn’t help the crop to grow efficiently.

Now, to increase access to the input, the government has been supplying subsidised fertiliser.

NEGATIVE IMPACT

However, it is worth noting that government entrance into the sector has affected private players, who play a crucial role by importing about 600,000 tonnes of fertiliser annually, against the government’s imports of about 500,000 tonnes.

Studies by the Tegemeo Institute show that the government’s move to expand the fertiliser subsidy programme to cover other crops such as tea, coffee and sugarcane negatively impacts the private sector’s share in the fertiliser market.

In a research focusing on farmer participation in the fertiliser market, Tegemeo Institute found that the national fertiliser subsidy has a potential of displacing commercial players from the market and this reduces farmers’ likelihood to get fertiliser by 30 per cent.

On average, every tonne of subsidised fertiliser distributed by the government displaces 200kg from the commercial market.

The situation may worsen due to the deepening of budgetary allocation to the fertiliser subsidy programme.

In essence, the government will end up being the sole actor supplying fertiliser in the market and this has potential risks.

The major risk include the existence of elite capture in the fertiliser subsidy programme where those benefitting are the wealthy farmers with large land sizes and the politically connected.

FERTILISER ADULTERATION

Earlier studies by Tegemeo had shown that only 9 per cent of farmers receive subsidised fertiliser. Of these, 60 per cent are from the high income group.

This is an indication that the national fertiliser subsidy does not favour resource-poor households. Another major challenge with this programme is fertiliser adulteration as it happened this year, affecting farmers’ produce.

Therefore, redesigning the current national fertiliser subsidy programme becomes an urgent matter. The change, however, should ensure that private players are not run out of business.

One strategy that will enhance access to subsidised fertiliser might be the zoning of the required fertiliser based on soil maps that show the distribution of soil nutrient demand.

Use of e-voucher system to distribute the input also aids in eliminating challenges that include adulteration, and the partnering of private sector players with county governments would help to deepen general fertiliser use.

The writer is a research associate, Tegemeo Institute of Agricultural Policy and Development.

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Resolutions

  • African Union Heads of States in 2006 adopted the Abuja Declaration on Fertiliser after realising that the continent was trapped in a fertiliser crisis.
  • They resolved to increase the level of use of fertiliser to at least 50kg per acre.
  • They promised to take appropriate measures to reduce the cost of fertiliser procurement at national and regional levels, eliminate taxes and tariffs on fertiliser.