KISUMU, KENYA: Rice farming in Kisumu is set for a major boost after national government handed farmers Sh150 million worth of equipment to help commercialise the crop.
Agriculture cabinet secretary Willy Bett is expected to officially hand over 25 tractors to the Ahero and West Kano irrigation schemes on Wednesday, marking the end of a two-year payment stalemate that saw the ministry threaten to withdraw.
For the rice farmers, the 25 tractors, rotavators, ridgers, levelers, trailers and disc ploughs, are the much needed turning point since some were already abandoning the crop due to high production costs. Less than half of the 2, 500 acres of the scheme is under use due to high cost hiring private machinery.
Kisumu County's Executive for Agriculture Henry Obade said the handover was the culmination of protracted talks between the ministry and National Treasury.
"We asked the Treasury to intervene and we have finally reached an agreement with the ministry. The farmers will lease the equipment through their cooperative as soon as they are launched and pay a maximum of Sh5 million monthly towards paying off the debt," he said.
He said the amount will paid by the farmers to an account controlled by the Treasury but it will be upon the county to ensure the money is paid.
The machines were given to the schemes by the national government at a subsidised cost of Sh63 million in June 2015. They were part of Japanese grant to Kenya and were sent to various irrigation schemes across the country.
The Japan Government loaned the machinery to the Kenya Government, which expected to recover the money from farmers to service the loan. In the Kisumu, West Kano was to contribute Sh32 million and their Ahero counterparts paying off rest.
According to the pay pact between the farmers and the Ministry of Agriculture, the farmers were to pay six months after delivery of the machinery before putting them into use. The county government, however, came in and pledged to pay the Sh63 million on behalf of the farmers, with the aim of recovering the money from the farmers later.
The Government threatened to repossess and give them to deserving farmers in other schemes after Kisumu flouted the pay deal.
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