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{
"id": 1097080,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1097080/?format=api",
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"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Kipipiri, JP",
"speaker_title": "Hon. Amos Kimunya",
"speaker": {
"id": 174,
"legal_name": "Amos Muhinga Kimunya",
"slug": "amos-kimunya"
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"content": " Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, I beg to move: THAT, the Irrigation (Amendment) Bill, (National Assembly Bill No. 12 of 2021), be now read a Second time. This is a critical Bill that seeks to update and streamline some provisions of the Irrigation Act of 2019 which, as you recall, was to make provisions for the development, management and regulation of irrigation as part of supporting sustainable food security and socio-economic development. The House will recall that His Excellency the President has undertaken some specific pillars that are critical to ensuring development of this country, as well as protecting people at the lower end of the pyramid - the very vulnerable groups - by ensuring that people have sufficient food. Just this afternoon, Members will recall that we passed the Second Reading of the NHIF (Amendment) Bill which anchors the health of human beings. We want a healthy nation, but we also want people to have adequate food as part of the realisation of Article 43 of the Constitution on the right of people to have adequate food. To get adequate food, you need to have adequate food production. We know that 80 per cent of the land mass of this country is either arid or semi-arid. For people living in those areas, if we will not change the way agriculture takes place by introducing proper irrigation methods, we will have 80 per cent of the land mass of this country being unusable and, hence, will affect food production and security. As a country, we are over-dependent on rain-fed agriculture. That is perhaps one of the reasons why every time there is a small drought, we run all over announcing to the world that we have food scarcity. Just a week or two weeks ago, we had a Motion to discuss the disaster that would come because the rains are failing and yet, with proper irrigation, we have seen countries in the deserts even having surplus food. One of the things that I picked up in our recent educational trips abroad is that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is in the desert, but has a forest. Beyond that, they are now creating rice plantations to supply the world with rice that is grown in the desert. For them to do that, they have to import soil. We have the soil. What we do not have are the proper irrigation methods and mechanisms. This Bill is trying to streamline the sector, so that we do better in terms of irrigation. The principal objective of this Bill is to amend the Irrigation Act of 2019, expand the administration and management of irrigation matters by the National Irrigation Authority and ensure adoption of best practices in irrigation, as well as sustainable development of irrigation infrastructure, investment in the same and financing. The Bill intends to consolidate the provision, management and administration of land, both in national or public irrigation schemes, as well as the inter-county schemes for public use. It also intends to amend Section 13 of the Act with the aim of harmonising the provisions of the Irrigation Act, the Water Act and the Water Resources Management Act, so that the three pieces of legislation have some level of consistency. The Bill further seeks to amend Section 22 of the Act to make provisions for the financing of potential development of irrigation infrastructure as well as how we finance irrigation services and advisory support. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}