Today, I embarked on an empowerment program to our farmers in the Semi Arid regions of Machakos County.
I issued cheques worth Kshs 22, 197, 550 to farmer groups at Muthetheni market in Mwala Sub-County courtesy of Kenya Climate Smart Agriculture Project.
My goal is to enhance farming activities through direct government support and also through local and international partnerships.
I am committed in boosting the financial muscle of our farmers as they play a key role in food and health security of our people. We must ensure that the farmers, the producers also benefit from their produce and have money in their pockets.
Over the last seven years, our Department of Agriculture has been able to distribute 795,792 tonnes of seeds and 36,000 bags of fertilizer. This has led to increased yields that has seen Machakos exit the arena of food donations.
We have also been able to plough 12,932 acres of arable land during the rain seasons through our tractors program. It is through this large scale farming activities that our farmers have been able to feed our people and also our neighbors in Nairobi and Kajiado County.
Through our hatchery program, over 121,118 chicks, 211,500 fingerlings have been distributed to our farmers as well as 1,000,289 animals vacinnated.
Over 11,946 farmers have been provided with certified farm inputs through contributory E-voucher system and we have also provided 33 motorbikes to our extension officers to help them reach our farmers easily.
Due to climate change and adverse effects of global warming, rain based agriculture is proving unsustainable and the world is looking at other alternatives.
My government has heavily invested in digging boreholes and earth dams and hundreds of families have taken advantage of this to engage in irrigation farming. We have also been keen on modernising agricultural activities by adopting modern farming techniques.
Data from our Department of Agriculture and our Department of Trade shows that there is increased production, demand and also consumption of our locally produced agricultural products. We are now able to feed our growing rural and urban populations through irrigation based Agriculture.
The potential in Agriculture is limitless.
Machakos residents please open your eyes to the existing and emerging opportunities in farming. I congratulate our young people, our men and women who are have embraced agriculture as a business.
Lastly, I wish to encourage our youth and organised women groups to visit our Agriculture offices in Machakos and apply for start up funds of the recently launched AgriBiz national program funded by the European Union and Danish Embassy.
It is time to work smart, find homegrown solutions to our challenges and I am confident that empowering our food producers is the first step towards a healthy and empowered nation.
Inawezekana Na Itawezekana.
Dr. Alfred N. MUTUA, EGH
Governor of Machakos,
Maendeleo Chap Chap Party Leader & 2022 Presidential Candidate.
March 11th, 2021
Governor of Machakos,
Maendeleo Chap Chap Party Leader & 2022 Presidential Candidate.
March 11th, 2021
