The County Government of Uasin Gishu in partnership with the World Bank has developed a multi-million Usalama – Chemusian Irrigation Project in Ainabkoi Sub–County.
The global lender’s Kenya Climate Smart Agriculture Project (KCSAP) seeks to put hundreds of acres of land under commercial irrigation of irish potato seeds.
Speaking when he hosted officials from the global lender, Ministry of Agriculture and other stakeholders, in his office on Monday, Uasin Gishu Governor, Jackson Mandago said the project will be a major boost to Kenya’s dream of food security.
In addition to fueling efforts for attainment of food security, Mandago said the project will also go an extra mile in solving the issue of land fragmentation, which he says poses a big challenge to food stability.
“This project has been designed that homes will be centralised and farming lands to be irrigated stretching uninterrupted,” said Mandago, adding that about 2000 households will benefit from the Sh. 600million project.
The governor at the same time threw his support to the national government’s affordable housing agenda, which he says will also assist in planning of homes and thereby reducing land fragmentation.
“This means homes will be built in the urban area while rural areas will be reserved for agricultural activities. It is saddening that arable lands in villages are fast reducing in size, a factor that should worry our efforts to attaining food security,” he says.
Speaking after visiting several dams sunk by the county government in Kaprobu, Usalama, and Lelkote, Vinay Kimar, the project team leader, said the county government had shown commitment to economically transform livelihoods of its people through development of dams.
“After visits to the dams, I have seen the commitment that the county has in efforts to better the lives of its people,” said Kumar, adding, “The World Bank comes with such a project as KCSAP to support in financial actualisation of projects.”
By Kiptanui Cherono
