Nyandarua county will use some 69 acres previously allocated for a private cemetery for the rich to set up an industrial park.
Governor Francis Kimemia revoked the cemetery plans made by his predecessor, Daniel Mwangi, for the land in Magumu, in Kinangop.
Kimemia said the park will focus on the processing of fresh produce from the county.
He noted that the county had been voted by the World Bank as one of the best investment destinations in the country.
Speaking in Engineer town in Kinangop, Kimemia said his government was keen on increasing potato production currently at 30 per cent.
Farmers are producing 550 metric tonnes of potatoes every year despite the high potential for more yields if supported, he said.
“We have embarked on the process of constructing five cold stores in the county to preserve our potatoes, which can fetch over Sh8 billion every year,” he said.
On Covid-19 measures, Kimemia said the county had already acquired 330 isolation beds with plans to increase the numbers in the coming months.
“So far we have two positive cases in Nyandarua which were reported after the lockdown was lifted and we have managed to trace all the 14 contact persons,” he said.
The county chief added that his administration had set aside Sh462 million to upgrade various health facilities in the county in the wake of the pandemic.
Kinangop MP Zack Kwenya said that many health centres in the county were grappling with acute shortage of staff.
He said that this had been worsened by the pandemic which had stretched the health workers as the number of positive cases rose.
“As we battle with the Covid-19 crisis, it’s important that we also address the issue of staff shortage and personal protective equipment for our health centres,” he said.
(edited by o. owino)
