The government will authorize the importation of 180,000 metric tonnes of sugar in efforts to cushion Kenyans from the skyrocketing prices.
Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development Cabinet Secretary (CS) Mithika Linturi explained that the increase in sugar prices has been occasioned by shortage of the commodity in the market.
Speaking at Kilimo house when he witnessed the handing over ceremony between the incoming State Department of Livestock Development Principal Secretary (PS) Jonathan Mueke and the outgoing PS Harry Kimtai, Linturi said that the sugar will be imported from within and outside COMESA countries so that they are able to bring the cost of sugar down since our mills are not producing enough sugar.
“Today because of the sugar shortage the prices in the market are very high and as a government we have to take measures to cushion our people the same way we have done in the short term measures to address the food shortage through the importation of maize and rice,” said Linturi.
The CS said that the only way to bring down the cost of food in the country is people going back to their farms and producing more with the help of the government fertilizer and farm inputs subsidy.
“If we do not revitalize our sugar factories to mill sugar, the shortage will be there permanently,” said the CS, adding that there is need to assist farmers to produce more sugarcane so that they support the production of enough sugar in the country.
Linturi said that currently there is no sugar within COMESA and they are being forced to go to countries like Dubai, India and Brazil to get the sugar.
“We thank God that there has been rains and because the farmers that we registered have taken full advantage of the fertilizer subsidy program, whenever I go across the country I can see very good food crop in our shambas and I am confident that when we get to the month of August we will have a very good harvest,” said Linturi.
The CS said that his focus now is to organize the post-harvest and ensure that the grains are properly dried and stored so that whatever is harvested does not go to waste.
By Joseph Ng’ang’a
