The 3rd edition of the Kenya Meat Expo held at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) has brought together stakeholders, exhibitors and the general public to discuss the revolution of the meat industry for bottom-up economic transformation.
Speaking at the event, Livestock Development PS Jonathan Mueke said that livestock generates about 12 percent of the gross domestic product, which the department believes should grow to 20 percent in order to bring significant growth to the livestock sector.
“As we embark on commercialising this sector, we have taken a value chain approach so that we can bring all actors from production, aggregation, value addition and manufacturing all the way to the market,” stated Mueke.
The PS emphasised that the Department is working with all these actors as one unit to create jobs and develop a valuable export development plan in the livestock sector.
Citing the Department’s journey of commercialising the meat sector from the market, Mueke reckoned that they discovered a huge market globally for animal-based protein, which consistently demands quantity and quality meat products.
“As Kenya, we are strategically placed to achieve this because we already have the resources including 22 million cattle, over 35 million goats and 25 million sheep,” he added.
Further, the PS disclosed that he had worked with the key stakeholders and developed a strategic intervention in the production sector to ensure they produce for the market in a sustainable manner.
He stressed the need to improve the breeding of animals, citing the Department’s specific intervention in developing a national balance sheet to monitor the amount of feed being produced.
“We have developed a livestock bill that is very progressive and that will commercialise the livestock sector,” announced the PS, adding that it has already been passed by the Cabinet and the Attorney General and is awaiting to be passed by parliament.
Mueke revealed that in the next few months, the Department will enact a system for livestock identification whereby they will register all livestock, track the feeding and nutrition regime and control diseases of the livestock.
This system, he assured, will solve the issue of cattle rustling and also ensure pastoralists get premium payments for their livestock.
By Blessing Mutheu and Lilian Mwikali