Homa Bay governor candidate Evans Kidero is proposing taxes on sugar cane from outside the county to protect local farmers.
Kidero said that will reduce the number of acres of sugarcane which dry up in the farms due to pathetic state of roads, corruption and bureaucratic harvesting processes.
He further said delays in harvesting of cane have rendered many farmers poor as they cannot reach millers.
Kidero said he will lobby Homa Bay county assembly to enact laws that will protect local farmers and improve the sugar sector to enable them benefit from cane harvested.
In his agenda, the former Nairobi governor wants taxes levied on cane sourced from outside Homa Bay to be used for maintaining roads and ensuring efficiency in cane harvesting and delivery to the factories.
“We must provide solutions to the problems bedevilling our sugar sector. Homa Bay cane farmers need to start benefiting from their cash crop,” Kidero said.
Speaking during a campaign rally in Kwabwai ward, Ndhiwa constituency, on Tuesday, Kidero said his administration will talk to investors in the sector to construct additional factories to increase the crashing capacity and provide more market for the harvested cane.
Sukari Industry in Kanyikela, Ndhiwa constituency, is the only cane miller in Homa Bay.
The miller crashes about 2,000 tonnes a day, but Kidero wants to bring a factory that can crash at least 10,000 tonnes a day.
Kidero said sugarcane was a leading cash crop and major contributor to economy of Homa Bay people.
He was accompanied by Ndhiwa MP candidate Michael Agwanda and communication expert Jack Nduri.
The former governor said he will put in place adequate and necessary interventions to ensure mature cane is harvested within 18 months to avoid wastage.
“Sugarcane will be harvested within 17-18 months so that the farmers can get reward for their arduous work. Most cane get harvested when they are in 37 months which interfere with quality,” he said.
Kidero said roads in Ndhiwa, parts of Homa Bay Town and Rangwe constituencies, which form part of the sugar belt in Homa Bay, will be maintained through sugar cess.
(edited by Amol Awuor)
