Agriculture Principal Secretary (PS) Dr. Paul Ronoh has challenged Narok farmers to use their expansive lands to plant wheat, so as to increase the production of the crop in the country.
Dr. Ronoh observed that Narok county and Timau area in Meru County are the key producers of wheat, where the two regions combined produce about five percent of wheat consumed in the country.
This means over 90 per cent of the wheat produced in the county is imported from outside the country, hence the need for farmers to increase the number of acreages on wheat production.
“We target to increase wheat production in the country from five per cent to over 20 per cent. We can only do this if our farmers increase the acreage of planting wheat,” he said.
This initiative, the PS reiterated, will decrease importation of wheat from other countries and build our economy.
“We have put measures to ensure that millers purchase locally produced wheat, before importing the commodity from other countries. I want to assure farmers that there is a good market for their wheat,” he said.
Dr. Ronoh was speaking at the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB), Narok branch, when he flagged off over 305, 000 bags of planting fertilizer and another 100, 600 bags of top-dressing fertilizer to benefit farmers in Narok county.
The PS underscored the importance of collaboration between counties and the national government to enhance agricultural production.
Towards this end, Dr. Ronoh revealed that his department had already put measures to ensure all counties get enough supply of subsidized fertilizer before the planting season, so as to increase production.
At the same time, he warned potato vendors who take advantage of innocent farmers to package extended bags of potatoes more than the recommended 50 kilograms, that they would be arrested and prosecuted.
“There is regulation that ensures potato packages do not exceed 50 kilograms. I want to ask all potato traders to respect the law, otherwise they risk prosecution,” he warned.
On his part, Governor Patrick Ntutu said over 125, 000 bags of wheat were lying at the local NCPD, and asked the PS to intervene so that farmers can get value for their sweat.
He said the county had recruited 210 youngsters as Agripreneur models, who have been taking key roles in registering farmers and spreading agriculture messages to the grassroots.
Agripreneurs model, is a transformative initiative under the National Agriculture Value Chain Development Project (NAVCDP).
Seven youths, most of whom have degrees in agricultural-related courses, were recruited in the 30 wards in the county to act as role model farmers to the community.
The governor committed to work with the national government to build a modern potato factory in the Mau region, where potatoes are produced in large quantities.
“We do not want to see farmers struggling to sell their produce. They work a lot to produce potatoes yet this is a perishable commodity, making middlemen take advantage of them,” he observed.
He reiterated his administration’s effort to renovate all roads in the county to ensure smooth transportation of farm inputs and produce.
Also present at the function were Narok Central Deputy County Commissioner Kennedy Mwangome, Narok Chief of Staff Francis Wanyeki and Narok County Executive Member in charge of Agriculture Joyce Keshe.
By Ann Salaton
