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"id": 1046233,
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"speaker_name": "Sen. (Prof.) Kindiki",
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"legal_name": "Kithure Kindiki",
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"content": "few counties where this crop is grown, the farmers have been left on their own both by the national Government and the county governments of our country. I know that there was a feeble attempt by the Governor of Kitui County to do something about the crop, but I think that the attempt fizzled out and enthusiasm collapsed. The governors of neighbouring counties such as Makueni, Tharaka-Nithi and parts of Meru counties, where mung beans are grown, did not give the Governor of Kitui County much support. I also think that the Governor of Kitui did not also exhibit adequate effort and passion to sort out the issue surrounding this crop. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, having congratulated the Mover of this Bill, I would like to add a few comments, which I think are useful in terms of improving this legislation. This Bill is appropriately captioned as The Mung Beans Bill (Senate Bills No.9 of 2020) and should remain as such and not localized as some of my colleagues have already said with the local name ‘ ndengu ’. I say so because during the long recess, I visited a small town in the North of England where the price of one kilogram of ndengu that is well packaged is approximately $20. One may ask: Why is it that whenever there is a local glut in the counties that produce the mung beans, it would fetch one dollar at best? One may ask why there is a difference. The difference is because the farmer in Kitui, Makueni, Tharaka-Nithi or wherever else the mung beans are grown, has no capacity or support from both the national Government and county governments to get their produce to England, Geneva in Switzerland, the Middle East countries such as Oman, Muscat, Dubai and Doha, as well as other countries in Asia and South America. There are many places in the word where this crop forms a part of meals in many families across cultures and continents. Many people around the world pay through the nose to buy this healthy delicacy. Other than the lack of support by both the national Government and county governments, the other reason mung beans has not done very well is because of the barriers in the international trade that makes it extremely difficult for developing countries like Kenya to get such precious products to the global market. I, therefore, insist that when the Committee looks at this Bill, they must find ways of coercing the Government of the Republic of Kenya to have some responsibilities of addressing both tariff and non-tariff barriers that affect Kenyan products, including the product that we are discussing this afternoon. I am of the view that we should focus on this crop because of its immense nutritional benefits. This crop has immense contributions to healthy eating, which is a major concern for health experts and nutritionists around the world today. This crop should, if not must, be included in the national strategic reserve. I do not see why the Government should not put this crop in the national strategic reserve, so that our solders in the barracks and other disciplined forces, as well as institutions of learning and other public institutions, can consume this crop. That would enable the Government to offload this crop at a very good price for the local farmer. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I also believe that this Bill should be linked with the warehousing receipt system, whose law we passed here last year, so that when there is an overproduction, the county governments, which are at the grassroots, should be able to receive these crops, store them for the farmers at a minimal fee and sell it when the The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}