Uhuru signs new bills to boost country's food security

The new irrigation law empowers county governments to establish irrigation development units to meet the irrigation needs of individual counties. 

The Land Value (Amendment) Act is also intended to ease the acquisition and access to land for the implementation of public infrastructure projects.

President Uhuru Kenyatta on Friday signed into law the Land Value (amendment) and Irrigation bills.

The two bills are aimed at improving food security and proper utilisation of the land resources. 

 The laws seek to respectively streamline the development, management and regulation of irrigation, make land rates, rent, stamp duty and compensation predictable, rational and not prone to subjective valuations.

The Irrigation Act is intended to support sustainable food production by among other interventions establishing the National Irrigation Development Authority (NIDA).

The Act also outlines the roles of national and county governments in facilitating irrigation activities in the country.

The NIDA established by the new law has been mandated to develop and improve irrigation infrastructure for national or public schemes as well as provide irrigation support services to private medium and smallholder projects in collaboration with county governments.

The bill was presented to the President for signature by Solicitor General Kennedy Ogeto, speaker of the National Assembly Justin Muturi, Ken Lusaka, National Assembly Majority Leader Aden Duale and Leader of Majority in the Senate Kipchumba Murkomen

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