Agency asks state to release more funds, assist affected livestock

Kenya Livestock Marketing Council chairman Dubat Amey has called on the national government to release more money to the Livestock department to purchase animal feed and drugs.

In September, President Uhuru Kenyatta declared drought a national disaster and directed the Treasury to assist the affected communities.

And last month, the state launched a livestock feed distribution exercise to seven drought-stricken counties to avert death due to hunger.

However, according to Dubat, the livestock feed being provided is too little and can barely be felt on the ground. 

He said the government should let the State Department for Arid and Semi-Arid lands help the affected people through the provision of food, water and cash transfers under the hunger safety net programme.

This will allow the Livestock department to work on animal feed, treatment and vaccination.

“As farmers, we appreciate the efforts made by the government to cushion the pastoralists from the effects of this drought. However, the Livestock department should be financed to specifically buy animal feed and drugs for our animals," Amey said.

"We want to see serious activities on the ground as far as having animal feed for the livestock is concerned.”

A spot check in the subcounties revealed a dire situation, with livestock carcasses strewn all over. Even drought-resistant animals like camels have not been spared.

According to Dubat, the government also needs to identify how it is going to help not only the livestock but also the wildlife because they, too, have been affected by the drought.

“Looking at the pattern of droughts that have occurred in the past, we see most likely that the current drought situation will be one of the severest in the last decade," he said.

"I want to appeal to the government to adequately plan for emergency response in case the situation worsens."

Experts have said that the drought situation in Kenya could turn into an emergency should the country fail to receive enough rain in the next few weeks.

The food security and nutrition situations are likely to worsen, requiring the need for expanding humanitarian assistance and interventions.

According to the National Drought Management Authority, 23 counties are at risk of being food-insecure.

At least 2.1 million people are food-insecure and this is expected to increase to nearly 2.4 million people by the end of November.

The pressure on pastoralists has intensified as climate change bites. 

A report by the NDMA said the situation in arid and semi-arid regions continues to worsen by the day.

The report further said that the cumulative impact of two consecutive seasons of poor rains, coupled with the Covid-19 pandemic and the locust invasion, has caused humanitarian needs in the regions. 

In his Mashujaa Day speech, President Kenyatta directed the Treasury to allocate Sh1.5 billion in support of the communities affected by the ongoing drought in the ASAL counties as part of the National Livestock Off-take Programme.

In October and this month, the government set aside Sh2.4 billion to handle the situation, disclosing that 1.2 billion had been spent on purchasing food for affected families.

(edited by Amol Awuor)