Agriculture CS Mithika Linturi has revealed plans to cushion the country from a looming famine.
Linturi told the press on January, 3 that the government plans to import maize and beans.
"The government will import grains in the short term while also working to increase domestic food production," Linturi said.
Linturi had distanced himself from the sentiments of Trade CS Moses Kuria about maize importation in November 2022.
"Hold your horses because I want to give you a position that I am ready to defend. I need to have statistics before I can answer that," he said.
But now the CS says the government seeks to deal with a looming crisis.
"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," he said.
The Agriculture CS also disclosed that the price of maize flour will soon go down.
“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,
He added that the government plans to grow more food in the next six months.
According to data from the Ministry of Agriculture, maize production in 2021 was 38 million bags and 42 million bags in 2020. 44.0 million and 44.6 million bags in 2019 and 2018 while 2017 saw the country harvest about 35.4 million bags of 90 kgs.6 months.
