Kisii Farmers Start Benefiting From Ruto's Ksh3.6 Billion Program

Registration of farmers on subsidized fertilizers kicked off at Kisii County on Saturday, January 7 as chiefs directed to ensure that every farmer has been registered.

The exercise is aimed at creating a digitized national farmer register that will identify imposters and rogue traders who have been exploiting farmers by accessing and reselling the subsided fertilizers at high prices.

Speaking at Agricultural Training Center (ATC) during the training with the administrators, Kisii central deputy county commissioner Wilberforce Kilonzo, stated that the registration will help the government to know the type of crops the farmers are growing and the total acreage.

Kisii Central Deputy County Commissioner Willbeforce Kilonzo addressing the press at Agricultural Training Centre (ATC) during the training of chiefs and their assistants on the registration of subsidy fertilizer. /VIRALTEAKE.ELIZABETH ANGIRA

Kilonzo called upon farmers to register and provide the required information about their farms to ensure the accuracy of the total number of farmers and their farm acreage.

He added that the initiative will also save the farmers from being conned by brokers who sell the fertilizers at high prices.

“The initiative is good for the farmers so that they can benefit from subsidized fertilizers,” he said.

He further noted that the initiative will help relieve farmers from the high cost of production and allow them to produce more food.

Kilonzo also revealed that the administrators will register the farmers at their offices so that they can capture all the farmers. During the training, the chiefs and their assistants were issued with tablets that will assist them to document the information.

According to him, the majority of the farmers do not apply quality fertilizers on their farms due to high costs and others being conned by brokers who hike prices hence leading to low yields.

“Due to this that is why the government has chipped in to save the farmers from brokers,” he said.

He cited that the subsidized fertilizers will enable farmers to produce high-quality farm produce to assist the government in food security and also it will reduce food prices.

However, he challenged youths to invest in agriculture as a measure to reduce growing youth unemployment in the country and to sustain their economic life, adding that it is important to engage youths in productive enterprises like agriculture and agribusiness.

“Most of the youths tend to think that farming is for the elderly persons, and they tend to shun it due to some challenges of farm inputs, “he cited.

He urged farmers to register with their area chiefs or their assistant’s chiefs to benefit from subsidized fertilizers.

The matter of cheap fertilisers has been among the top items on the to-do list of President William Ruto's Kenya Kwanza government since it took power on Tuesday, September 13.

His mission to lower the cost of fertiliser in the country took effect after the swearing-in ceremony when the government set aside Ksh3.55 billion through the National Treasury to implement the directive, which comes as good news to farmers seeking subsidised fertiliser.

On December 22, 2022, he vowed to eliminate brokers and middlemen in the food production chain to reduce the cost of farm inputs and benefit farmers from access to markets.