Directive On Ksh100 Maize Flour Ends

Agriculture Cabinet Secretary (CS), Peter Munya has suspended the Ksh100 maize flour subsidy programme.

The CS, while announcing the directive on Saturday, August 13, cited inadequate funds from the National Treasury.

This means that the Ksh100 per 2kg of maize flour that Kenyans have been enjoying comes to an end as the prices of maize flour are expected to shoot up.

"As you are aware, the government through this Ministry and other key stakeholders has been implementing the ongoing Maize Flour Subsidy Program in partnership with contracted Millers under a Presidential Executive Order," 

Agriculture CS Peter Munya speaking in a past media briefing. /PNU

"However, due to inadequate exchequer releases from the National Treasury, it has been decided that the Maize Flour Subsidy program be suspended with immediate effect.

"The purpose of this memo, therefore, is to direct that you suspend the above program immediately and prepare a comprehensive closure report for my review as soon as practical," he stated.

President Uhuru Kenyatta on July 20 ordered for maize flour to retail at Ksh100 from Ksh205 across the country, noting that this was part of a stimulus programme aimed at protecting Kenyans from the high cost of living.

With the current directive, the millers are allowed to sell maize flour at prices determined at their will.

In its spot checks on maize flour prices, Viral Tea had paid a visit to four supermarkets within the Thika Road area, including two at Garden City Mall, to ascertain whether or not the directive was actually enforced.

Out of the four supermarkets sampled, only two were selling the most staple food in the whole country at the new price, with one of them setting a limit of one 2kg packet per person in a bid to avert panic buying ahead of the August 9 general elections.

However, that was merely for one brand. The rest still held on to the maximum prices, some charging Ksh193 and others Ksh230, Ksh231 and Ksh257.

During the visit, Viral Tea learnt that stock had run out among one of the popular maize flour brands, which could probably explain the reason behind the implementation of its directive to avoid the unga crisis in the supermarket.

However, the story was much different in another supermarket nearby where the prices of unga across all brands sold were unchanged. The same case went for another in Garden City, a premise once termed as the largest in the country by space before Two Rivers overtook it.

There was hope in another supermarket we visited in the mall as one of the brands heeded the President's directive.

But there was still the mad rush to purchase the product as we were unlucky to run into a section of Kenyans who had scooped up what was visibly the final remaining stocks of maize flour for the day. To be specific, by the time of conducting independent spot checks, that maize flour brand was going for Ksh98.

Retailers who spoke to Viral Tea revealed that the presidential directive could not have taken effect immediately as some of them had purchased stock with the old price.

Thereafter, the Cereal Millers Association (CMA) blamed the scarcity of Ksh100 maize on panic buying,with most Kenyans purchasing the maize in bulk ahead of the polls.

"This surge in demand is as a result of consumers enjoying the benefits of subsidized Ksh100 prices by buying above-average stocks. CMA stated that consumers stocking up ahead of August 9, General Election," the statement read in part.

"The government has taken the necessary interventions needed to make vulnerable households' food secure through the subsidy-backed programme that has capped the retail price of the 2-kilogramme maize flour brands at Ksh100."

Maize flour being sold at a supermarket. /MARVIN CHEGE.VIRALTEAKE