Samboja presides over chicken auction, raises Sh1.2m

Taita Taveta County Governor Granton Samboja (right) conducting a chicken auction at Voi's Ghazi trading centre in the County

Taita Taveta Governor Granton Samboja on Monday presided over the first ever chicken auction in the region where local farmers fetched more than Sh 1.2 million.

In the auction held at Ghazi trading centre in Voi Sub County, more than 1,000 domestic birds were sold to the potential buyers.

The governor who is also one of the prominent poultry farmers in the region bought chicken worth over Sh 340,000. The highest chicken was sold at Sh 1,200 while the lowest at Sh 700.

Speaking during the auction, Mr Samboja announced that plans were at advanced stage to establish a chicken auction market along the busy Nairobi-Mombasa highway with an aim of not only improving the farmers income and revenue collection but also spur economic growth.

“The county has the potential of producing indigenous chicken because there is enough land for the production. Motorists plying along the busy highway daily will be the main customers. My government will also liaise with the Mombasa County government to establish another auction market for our chicken in the City,” said the governor.

“The region has a conducive environment taking into account that it had been designated as disease free zone. Owing to its proximity to the highway and the SGR, the market facility is an ideal place for the growth of the poultry, dairy and beef industry in the county and country at large,” added Samboja.

Last month, the governor presided over the first auction of the county government livestock exercises at Bachuma multiplication centre where over Sh 900,000 was fetched.