Posted on June, 19, 2019 at 10:35 am
Lewis Njoka - MediaMax Network
Food security experts have criticised the 2019/20 financial year Budget saying it focused on large-scale farmers at the expense of smallholder farmers who account for 80 per cent of all food producers in the country.
According to Alexander Owino, a food security expert, the government currently seems keen on deepening large-scale farming best suited for temperate zones as opposed to smallholder farming which thrives in tropical zones like Kenya.
“Large-scale irrigation such as Galana Kulalu will require that we complete the Grand High Falls Dam first, which will take at least three years, yet it will not result in even food distribution. Irrigating smallholder farms will have a larger impact,” said Owino.
Irrigation target
“Smallholder farmers collectively produce more food than large-scale farmers and utilise safer, locally available inputs,” he added.
Large-scale irrigation projects are implemented under public-private partnerships (PPP) which is out of reach for smallholder farmers, according to Owino.
He called on the government to reinstate extension services, implement smallholder irrigation projects, discourage the use of harmful chemical pesticides and prioritise food production.
Owino’s views were echoed by Route to Food Initiative project lead Layla Liebetrau who said that the government had allocated only three per cent to agriculture at a time when more than 10 million Kenyans were facing chronic food insecurity.
Liebetrau sought clarity on how the agriculture quota was meant to be utilised saying that despite it being inadequate it was to be spent on non-food production.
“Why not allocate at least 10 to 15 per cent to a sector that contributes 34 per cent of the gross domestic product?” she posed.
Source: MediaMax Network