•100,000km of last mile fiber optic networks across the country will be created.
•Food accounts to 54 per cent of households expenditure in the country.
Image: FILE
President William Ruto has pledged to invest Sh40 billion in the digital superhighway to facilitate broadband connectivity across the country and in turn boost agriculture.
The government, he said, plans to create an additional 100,000 kilometres of last mile fibre optic network across the country.
The digital superhighway is expected to boost the transformation of agriculture, Micro, Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (MSMEs), health and fintech.
Speaking at the opening of Twiga Foods distribution facility at Tatu City in Ruiru, Kiambu county, Ruto said that food accounts to 54 per cent of households expenditure in the country, hence the need to boost the agriculture sector .
He sad there are plans to establish a produce and consolidation centre in every county in line with the government’s vision for agriculture led growth.
This will also help solve the food crisis in the country.
“Agriculture has the highest employment multiplier effect. Due to inter linkages with other sectors, agriculture growth creates more job than any other industry,” Ruto said.
He said economic growth will also be experienced as markets for Kenyan agricultural produce expands.
“Last week I was in the DRC and we agreed with President Tshisekedi that they will provide a space for us to set up warehouses in Lubumbashi, Kinshasa, Goma and other two towns as part of the East African integration and part of trading frame work,” Ruto added.
According to Central Bank data, agriculture continues to play a critical role in Kenya’s economy, accounting for 20 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
The sector also employs over 40 per cent of the total population and more than 70 per cent of the rural populace and about 25 per cent of the annual workforce.
The Economic Survey 2022 indicates that agriculture remained the dominant sector, accounting for about 22.4 per cent of the overall GDP in 2021.
The sector recorded mixed performance, contracting by 0.1 per cent in 2021 compared to a growth of 5.2 per cent in 2020.