After the government revealed intentions to buy 1 million bags of maize locally at a higher price, farmers all around the nation may now exhale with relief.
On Thursday, Mithika Linturi, the cabinet secretary for agriculture and livestock development, said that the government will pay Sh4,000 for a bag of 90 kilograms of maize.
Following a good crop for farmers, Linturi stated that maize would be acquired for the National Strategic Food Reserve through the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB).
The Cabinet Secretary added that the government has already ordered mobile dryers to help farmers dry their crops before selling them to the government while testifying before the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Livestock, and Fisheries to inform the Committee of the steps being taken by the government to address issues in the agricultural sector.
The dryers, according to Linturi, would help farmers reduce post-harvest losses by ensuring that their corn is correctly dried and stored.
“Farmers will be able to enhance their revenue and maintain the quality of their maize thanks to the mobile dryers. He continued that post-harvest losses have historically presented a substantial difficulty for farmers, so this is an important advance.
To guarantee that the macadamia nut sub-sector is lucrative, Linturi further reassured the Committee, which Kirinyaga County Senator James Murango led, that his ministry is addressing the issues with the condition of macadamia nut production and marketing.
“We are looking into overseas markets to guarantee that our farmers profit from the macadamia sub-sector. All farmers will make more money thanks to increased food production, which is a goal of my ministry, the CS continued.
The news comes shortly after President William Ruto restricted the importation of wheat and maize to safeguard local farmers.
The President added that The government has already set aside sh4 billion to purchase corn from farmers.
The Head of State declared that NCPB driers will be used to dry farmers’ maize at a low cost of Sh50 per bag instead of the high charge of Sh400 per bag that farmers previously paid to decrease post-harvest losses due to high moisture.
“Even if farmers don’t want to sell their maize to NCPB, they will have an opportunity to dry their produce at the State agency and store it,” the president said on October 6.
