Kenya will import maize and rice to avert famine, CS Linturi
Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mithika Linturi announced on Tuesday, January 3, that the government will be importing maize and rice to avoid a potential famine caused by poor crop projections.
“We are not doing it because we want, but the projections are so bad, that if we do not do it our people will die for lack of food,” Linturi told the media.
The government plans to import the grains in the short term while also working to increase domestic food production in the coming months.
Linturi reassured the public that the government is committed to reducing the cost of maize and rice by the end of February.
“I want to commit, by the end of March… by the end of February, the cost of unga will have come down, the cost of rice will have come down,” Linturi said.
The news of the grain imports has sparked concern among Kenyan farmers, who fear that the imports will hurt their businesses.
Linturi assured them that the government is working to support local farmers and increase domestic food production in the long term.
“We are planning ourselves to grow more food in another 6 months or so,” he said.
The Kenyan government had previously lifted a 10-year ban on biotechnology foods in the country, paving the way for the importation of genetically modified crops (GMO) duty-free for six months.
However, this plan has been halted by the High Court, which temporarily suspended the government’s plan to allow the importation and distribution of GMOs pending the determination of a lawsuit against the lifting of the ban.
President William Ruto has maintained that he will not re-introduce subsidies on commodities like food, fuel, and electricity, unlike his predecessor Uhuru Kenyatta.
In his New Year address to Kenyans, Ruto said that his decision to suspend subsidies when he took power in September was the right one, calling them unsustainable and a risk to the economy.
“We had to do away with those subsidies or they would cost our economy big time,” Ruto said.
According to Trading Economics, food inflation in Kenya is expected to be 15% by the end of this quarter.
In the long-term, Kenya’s food inflation is projected to trend around 7.3% in 2023 and 6% in 2024.
Over four million Kenyans are currently facing severe drought in Arid and SemiArid regions.
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