Locals to get 40,000 bags of maize from Galana-Kulalu harvest

Cabinet Secretary for Water and Irrigation Eugene Wamalwa (middle), flanked by officials from the National Irrigation Board inspects maize plants around the Galana-Kulalu model farm project at Malindi in Kilifi County. Tana River and Kilifi counties, which house the Galana-Kulalu project, are set to get at least 60 per cent of the harvest from the 2,500 acres. (PHOTO: MAARUFU MOHAMED/ STANDARD)

Tana River and Kilifi counties, which house the Galana-Kulalu project, are set to get at least 60 per cent of the harvest from the 2,500 acres.

The two counties, which are among the worst hit in the ongoing wave of famine across the country, are poised for what will be the first direct dividend from the irrigation-supported food security project. According to the Principal Secretary in the State Department of Irrigation, Nduati Mwangi, it is expected that the 2,500 acres will yield at least 70,000 and plans are already in place to ensure locals benefit.

“We are working hand in hand with the Ministry of Devolution and Planning to ensure the current harvest is going to specially target the population of this area,” he told journalists. Speaking during a tour to assess the progress of the project, Mwangi said the Ministry of Devolution and Planning has already conducted a study to get the details of those hit by famine in the region.

This will help avert the irony of a starving population yet the project, which is now in third-cycle of harvesting, is within their counties. Mwangi said the maize will be delivered as relief to save them from meeting any cost.

Falling below target

With over 1.3 million Kenyans facing starvation, the progress of the project has been criticised as being slow but Mwangi refuted that, saying it was critical to lay enough upstream infrastructure before increasing acreage.

“A lot of the actual crop is at a lower level but given the progress of engineering works, we believe we will hit the target of completing the infrastructure by March next year,” he said. The project had also been criticised for falling below the target of 40 bags per acre. The second cycle of the crop was affected by floods and poorly performing varieties.

However, according to National Irrigation Board Acting General Manager Gitonga Mugambi, the yield has significantly improved especially because the project has narrowed down to best four seed varieties from the initial 13. “We are now doing average yield of about 31 bags (each 90 kilograms) per acre. This compares positively with the national average of 18 bags per acre,” he said.

So far about 1,300 tonnes of the produce from the project are in store at Voi, with Mr Mugambi saying tests to settle on even better varieties are ongoing. Currently, there is ongoing work to put up canals on the river so that water is directed to the intake points, from where it is supplied to the farm.

The water can support up to 20,000 acres, meaning that it will be enough to roll out the entire pilot phase of 10,000 acres before a dam is needed. The expansive ranches that are on the far end of Tsavo East National Park have the capacity of 1.2 million irrigable acres.