Farmers urge government to introduce supplementary budget
Dominic Sanganyi, a farmer at Kiplombe in Uasin Gishu County, puts maize into stacks on October 28, 2013. North Rift farmers have appealed to MPs from maize growing areas to campaign for lower seed prices. FILE PHOTO | JARED NYATAYA | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- He said the Sh2.7 billion the government allocated the National Cereals and Produce Board for the purchase of maize was not enough. Mr Menjo said the money could only buy eight million bags.
- Two weeks ago, Governor Jackson Mandago asked farmers to stop overreliance on maize and try vegetable farming and horticulture.
North Rift farmers have called on the government to come up with a supplementary budget for the purchase of maize.
Kenya Farmers Association North Rift Director Kipkorir Menjo spoke on behalf of the farmers during this year’s Mashujaa Day celebrations at 64 Stadium, Eldoret.
He said the Sh2.7 billion the government allocated the National Cereals and Produce Board for the purchase of maize was not enough. Mr Menjo said the money could only buy eight million bags.
He added that farmers’ problems had been aggravated by the importation of cheap maize from Uganda and Tanzania. The lethal Maize necrosis disease was also ravaging the crop in some parts of the North Rift.
“The Agricultural Finance Corporation which has been the lifeline for farmers in need of loans is underfunded yet farmers cannot afford high interest rates charged by banks,” Mr Menjo said.
He said at least Sh3 billion should be given to the corporation.
He added that the farmers would not take their maize to the NCPB depots until the price of a bag was raised to Sh3,800.
“This would make up for the expenses incurred when preparing land and harvesting,” he said.
Mr Menjo accused the government of contributing to the rise in the price of fertilisers. He said the government had taken long to buy subsidised fertiliser.
“A 25-kilogramme bag of fertiliser was going for Sh4,500, up from Sh3,750 last year and this led to farmers incurring huge costs,” he said.
Two weeks ago, Governor Jackson Mandago asked farmers to stop overreliance on maize and try vegetable farming and horticulture.
“Time has come for us to expand our thinking. We should venture into farming activities which can earn us high returns within a very short time,” the governor said.
