Kenya Cooperative Creameries
-During his tour of Uasin Gishu County this month, President Kenyatta opened an ultra-modern milk factory in Eldoret that will benefit dairy farmers in Uasin Gishu County and the whole of North Rift.
-The factory, which is the biggest and most modern milk plant in East and Central Africa, was revived by the national government at a cost of Kshs 500 million.
-While addressing a public rally in Meru town on Friday, President Kenyatta waived loans amounting to Kshs 475 million for dairy farmers belonging to the Meru Dairy Union owed to the Government.
-Since the Jubilee government came to office in 2013, it has also paid off more than 40,000 dairy farmers who were owed in excess of Kshs 500 million since 1999 and were neglected by previous administrations.
-The Jubilee Government also spent Kshs 800 million to build a second bull station in Kitale that will generate quality semen for Artificial Insemination (AI) services following an increased demand from Kenyan dairy farmers. This is in addition to the one in Kabete.
In 2013 there was only one liquid nitrogen plant located at Kabete. President Kenyatta’s administration has since put up five more liquid nitrogen plants.
-The latest of the five plants that produces liquid nitrogen – the key ingredient for preservation of livestock semen used in artificial insemination – was built at Sotik, Bomet County, at a cost of Kshs 125 million and was opened by the President during his tour of the county this month. The animal resource centre, which serves 16 counties including Kericho, Kisii and Migori, has ensured that livestock farmers from the region can easily improve their livestock breeds at an affordable price.
-President Kenyatta has also pledged to exempt all milk products from value added tax and remove import duties on yellow maize used for making animal feeds for the benefit of both farmers and consumers of dairy products.
Livestock insurance
– To cushion pastoralists from the effects of severe drought, President Kenyatta in March this year at Lodwar launched the Kenya Livestock Insurance Programme (KLIP) – the first of its kind in Kenya, East Africa and Africa – to enable pastoralists to restock even after they lose their livestock through drought.
-The programme has been rolled out in the six arid counties of Turkana, Wajir, Marsabit, Isiolo, Mandera and Tana River covering 70,060 Tropical Livestock Units (TLUs) with premiums so far paid worth Kshs 220 million.
-Plans are underway to extend the programme to the counties of Baringo, Samburu, West Pokot and Garissa where 8,000 beneficiaries have already been identified while Kajiado, Narok, Laikipia and Lamu are also targeted.
Crop insurance
-Initiated during President Kenyatta’s administration, the unique crop insurance programme is currently benefitting 1000 farmers in Embu, Bungoma and Nakuru counties.
Sugar:
MUMIAS
– With debts amounting to Kshs 6.2 billion and piling, Mumias Sugar Company – which is the backbone of the economy of Mumias and its environs – was hurtling towards collapse, threatening the livelihoods of many sugarcane farmers in the area until the Jubilee Government injected Kshs 3.1 billion to revive it.
– Over the last four years, President Kenyatta has consistently made efforts to support cane farmers in Western and Nyanza regions. During his recent visit to Kakamega, the President ordered the National Treasury to release Kshs 500 million to the Mumias Sugar Company to pay money owed to farmers.
– Chemelil, Miwani, Muhoroni, Sony and Nzoia sugar companies owed the Government a cumulative Kshs 59 billion that had accrued over the years. The Jubilee Government wrote off Kshs 33 billion of that debt to make companies attractive to investors and boost farmers’ earnings.
NZOIA
– During his recent tour of Bungoma County, the President ordered the National Treasury to release Kshs 300 million to the beleaguered Nzoia Sugar Company to pay farmers their outstanding money.
CHEMELIL
– President Kenyatta has facilitated the release of Kshs 300 million to pay farmers who supplied cane to Chemilil Sugar Company as part of the Government’s efforts to revamp cane farming in Kenya’s sugar belt.
Tea
-Tea is one of the country’s leading foreign exchange earners. As a move to reduce the cost of production and increase earnings, the Government exempted tea farmers from paying levies and cess.
Coffee
-With debts running into billions of shillings owed to cooperatives by farmers, the coffee sector has for years been facing challenges that have hampered its optimal productivity. To revamp the sector as he has done to others, President Kenyatta waived a debt of Kshs 478 million for Coffee farmers’ SACCOs, and Kshs 1.7 billion on STABEX funds through the Cooperative Bank of Kenya in the coffee growing zones of Central, Eastern, Kisii and Western.
Maize
-Government has subsidised fertilizer, bringing down the cost from Kshs 6000 per 50 kg bag to the current Kshs 1800 with expanded access to the farm input across the country. Steps have also been taken to subsidize and bring the price of fertilizer further down to a cost of Kshs 1200 by December this year.
-Annually, distribution has more than doubled with 918,000 MT distributed to 1.5 million small scale farmers compared to 402,800 MT that used to reach only 430,000 small scale farmers before the Jubilee Government came to office. This has led to an increase in maize yield of 22 bags per acre compare to the previous yield of 10 bags per acre.
-The fertiliser subsidies have also been extended to other crops including coffee, tea and sugarcane.
Fishing
– Fisherfolks have also benefitted from the waive of debts to boost their fishing activities and lift their lives. When he visited Port Victoria in Busia County, President Kenyatta announced the waiver of debts to Budalangi fisher folks owed to the Agricultural Finance Corporation.
-Lake Naivasha in Nakuru County, Lake Jipe in Taita Taveta County and Tana River Dam in Tana River County have been restocked, increasing fish population for the local fisherfolks.
-The Government has provided 922 cages to fish farmers around Lake Victoria while countrywide, 7,000 fish farmers have been trained and given fingerlings.
-In 2016, President Kenyatta also signed into law the Fisheries Management and Development Bill 2016 that has helped combat illegal fishing within Kenya’s territorial waters at the Coast leading to Kshs 10 billion annual earnings. The country was previously losing these funds as a result of illegal fishing.
-Government has invested Kshs 3.6 billion in a deep sea research vessel (RV Mtafiti). This has ensured increased marine fish landings as a result of better quality research.
ADC farms
– This month President Kenyatta facilitated the payment of wage arrears to 25,000 workers amounting to Kshs 250 million.
MIRAA
-Government has spent Kshs 2.2 billion to cushion miraa farmers from the challenges facing them, including helping them to migrate to other crops.
-President Kenyatta also intervened and held talks with his Somali counterpart to have planes transporting miraa from Kenya to Somalia to resume their flights in September 2016.
Speaking in Meru, President Kenyatta dismissed as cheap politics claims by the opposition that his administration has only assisted some segments of the farming fraternity at the expense of others.