Government has set aside Ksh 49.9 billion for relevant programs in the budget to support the aspirations of attaining food and nutrition security.
Speaking while presenting the 2023/24 budget at the National Assembly, National Treasury Cabinet Secretary Prof. Njuguna Ndung’u said that out of the proposed Ksh 49.9 billion; Ksh 5.0 billion is proposed for the Fertilizer Subsidy Programme.
For the National Agricultural Value Chain Development Project he proposed Ksh 8.6 billion; Ksh 2.7 billion for the National Agricultural and Rural Inclusivity Project and Ksh 2.1 billion for the Kenya Cereal Enhancement Programme.
“Ksh 2.8 billion will cater for Emergency Locust Response; Ksh 1.4 billion for Small Scale Irrigation and Value Addition Programme; Ksh 1.3 billion for Food Production and Nutrition Security Programme; Ksh 500 million for Agricultural Sector Development Support Programme and Ksh 596 million for the Food Security and Crop Diversification Project.” Said CS Ndung’u.
Similarly, to improve livestock production, the CS proposed budget allocations of Ksh 3.7 billion to De-Risking, Inclusion and Value Enhancement of Pastoral Economies Programme; Ksh 2.1 billion for Livestock Value Chain Support Project; Ksh 1.5 billion for Kenya Livestock Commercialization Programme and Ksh 166 million for the Embryo Transfer Project.
He allocated Ksh 350 million for the Development of the Leather Industrial Park at Kenanie; Ksh 220 million for Livestock Production; and Ksh 132 million for Leather Value Chain.
To ensure legitimacy of land ownership, the CS proposed allocation of Ksh 1.2 billion for Processing and Registration of Title deeds.
Another Ksh 2.6 billion for Settlement of the Landless as well as Ksh 755 million for Digitization of Land Registries and Ksh 138.3 million for Construction of Land Registries.
Agricultural transformation he noted is one of the five government’s strategic priorities under the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda that is geared towards economic turnaround and inclusive growth.
The government plans to implement interventions to ensure food security in the country through climate change mitigation and adaptation, thereby reducing the cost of living.
Treasury CS says: “As part of the country’s long-term food security plan, the Government, working with the private sector, will continue to subsidize fertilizer in order to make it available and improve productivity in counties.”
This intervention is also aimed at creating jobs as agriculture has the highest employment multiplier effect owing to its strong forward and backward linkages to other sectors of the economy.
