How the Government seeks to kill the maize cartels

Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mwangi Kiunjuri (Left) chats with KARLO Director General Eliud Kereger (Right) and AMRI Director General Noah Wawire during his tour at Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation (KARLO) in Machakos County on June 4, 2018. Mr. Kiunjuri said that the first aftlaxes plant manufactured to prevent aflotoxin in crops is now operational. Photo: John Muia, Standard

The Government has launched a registration drive of cereal farmers in Rift Valley in order to edge out brokers in the supply chain.

Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mwangi Kiunjuri said the registration drive will capture details of the farmers acreage and is mandatory for all who seek to trade with the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB).

“When the Government announces prices to be offered by the NCPB, only registered farmers will be expected to supply,” Kiunjuri said while opening the Meru ASK show.

The new exercise comes after revelations that brokers edged out genuine farmers from offloading their harvest to the national grain stores.

It is suspected some of the brokers sourced their supplies from Uganda where prices are lower.

Kiunjuri said with the registration drive, brokers will be eliminated from dealing with the NCPB either in delivery of produce and acquisition of subsidised inputs.

In the 2017/18 financial year, the Government procured and distributed 159,400 metric tonnes of fertiliser, which farmers were to access at subsidised prices but it is feared most of it was ofloaded to brokers who then sold it to farmers at a premium.

Meanwhile, Kiunjuri said the ministry was only aware of Sh1 billion allocation to Meru County and was working towards ensuring the funds were utilised before the end of the financial year.

Kiunjuri said he could only vouch for resources he had found in the ministry on his appointment and would only speak about the Sh1 billion allocated to Meru in the 2017/2018 financial year.

“In future, we shall be able to speak about what happened to the rest of the resources totalling Sh1.2 billion which had been allocated to Meru County in earlier budgets,” he said.

“We are in constant consultations with the Meru Gounty Government to ensure that the funds were not sent back to the Treasury at the end of the financial year.”