Why gov't wants permission to import rice

Attorney General Dorcas Oduor. [File, Standard]

The government yesterday defended its plan to import 500,000 tonnes of Grade 1 milled white rice tax-free.

Appearing before the High Court, Attorney General Dorcas Oduor and Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe, the officials said blocking the importation could worsen the country’s growing food crisis.

They urged Justice Edward Muriithi not to impose conservatory orders halting the importation warning that the country’s current rice supply is structurally deficient with domestic production meeting less than 20 per cent of annual demand.

“Your Lordship, blocking these imports now would have immediate and severe consequences for millions of Kenyans. Domestic production cannot meet demand and local stocks alone are not enough to stabilise prices,” the government lawyer Samuel Kaumba told the court.

According to the government, blocking imports could trigger sharp price increases, disproportionately affecting low-income households in informal settlements and drought-affected counties.

“Rising rice prices disproportionately affect low-income households, particularly in informal settlements and drought-affected counties,” State Counsel Kaumba informed the court.

“If rice becomes unaffordable, households shift to maize, pushing up maize prices as well.”

The court heard that from January to June 2026, the country will require about 750,000 metric tonnes of rice, yet domestic output is projected at just 110,000 metric tonnes.

Official data presented to the court shows the country’s rice deficit  is worsening amid erratic rainfall and reduced water availability in key irrigation schemes such as Mwea, Ahero, and Bunyala.

Kaumba submitted that in rain-fed areas, failed or delayed rains have wiped out entire planting seasons, increasing production costs and constraining output.

Citing the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development’s Contingency Emergency Response Action Plan 2025, Kaumba painted an even starker picture, projecting a rice deficit of 381,225 metric tonnes by the end of January 2026.

CS Kagwe told the judge that local rice stockpiles cannot meet national demand. Since 2020, the Kenya National Trading Corporation (KNTC) has purchased rice from multiple schemes for redistribution to public institutions, but even full absorption of these stocks would leave a massive shortfall.

“The Court is being asked to weigh competing interests and on one side are commercial concerns; on the other are the livelihoods, dignity, and survival of millions of Kenyans,” the government lawyer said.

By November 2025, an estimated 1.8 million people in Arid and Semi-Arid Land (ASAL) counties were already experiencing acute food insecurity.

Without timely intervention by the government, the court heard that the number is projected to rise sharply to 3.5 million people, underscoring the human cost of delayed policy action. The government is seeking approval to allow controlled, time-bound duty-free rice imports to fill the gap.

The plan, however, is challenged in court by Kirinyaga Senator James Kamau Murango and Baragwi Ward MCA David Mathenge, who question Gazette Notice No 10353 of July 28, 2025, authorising the duty-free importation of up to 500,000 metric tons of grade-one rice.

The petitioners are accusing the National Treasury and Agriculture ministries of bypassing public participation, violating farmers’ property rights and acting outside the East African Community Customs Management Act. The case will be heard on January 29, 2026,