•When he came to power in 2002, various sectors were grappling with inefficiency while some were on their deathbed.
•After 10 years of his tenure, many say Kibaki left a difference that they still yearn for to date.
The late President Mwai Kibaki had immense contributions to various sectors of the economy.
When he came to power in 2002, various sectors were grappling with inefficiency while some were on their deathbed.
After 10 years of his tenure, many say Kibaki left a difference that they still yearn for to date.
Many will be mistaken to imagine that the late Kibaki’s impeccable service delivery to Kenya only happened during his tenure as a president.
A walk down the memory lane in Kenya’s dairy sector brings to the fore Kibaki’s footsteps as we trace his role in this crucial economy.
Kibaki’s history with the daily sector dates to the early years of post-independence when he chaired the Commission on Dairy Development, in 1964.
The commission recommended a raft of crucial measures that formed a steady foundation that the sector would always pride itself in.
The key recommendation was to increase access to Kenya Creameries Corporation for all dairy farmers as long as they met acceptable quality standards.
This made KCC a guaranteed market for all raw milk as well as a buyer of last resort, market monopoly and a mandate as a buyer of last resort.
The recommendations saw KCC embark on a rapid expansion program that was vital to establishing a countrywide network of processing factories and cooling plants to enable it to fulfil its new role.
While serving as a Minister of Commerce and Industry on November 26, 1968, he was the chief guest when KCC opened its new premises in Nairobi, Industrial Area, Creamery House. The premises later became KCC’s Headquarters.
During his tenure as Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Kibaki launched KCC Kitale Factory in November 1972 and opened the Nyahururu Factory on March 17, 1978.
When he became President in 2002, Kibaki bought back the KCC and ensured it became a state entity. The government then parted with Sh547m to have its assets reverted back to the government.
Before then, KCC had been taken over by private ventures under the control of a few entities.
The NARC Government renamed and registered the Company as New Kenya Cooperative Creameries Ltd.
The purchase and revival of KCC was part of the new NARC Government’s promise to reinvigorate the agricultural sector by reviving key organisations, companies and institutions that had collapsed or were not performing.
During his tenure in 2006, he commissioned the rehabilitated New KCC Miritini Factory.
Thanks to his indelible mark in the sector, Kibaki is credited for what the dairy sector is today.
The Kenya dairy Industry today is dynamic and growing with many farmers and private sector players investing in processing.
The modernization of New KCC by the Jubilee Administration under the Manufacturing Pillar of Agenda Four has contributed to enhanced capacity and market and farmers are now being paid Sh5 billion annually.
This is changing livelihoods and alleviating poverty in the rural population.