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{
    "id": 1180099,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1180099/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 157,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Kikuyu, UDA",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Kimani Ichung’wah",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "feeding programme to the affected households in the most affected ASAL counties to avert hunger and acute malnutrition. On the performance of the 2022 rain season, Kenya largely depends on rain-fed agriculture. The 2022 long rain season of March to May started late and was erratic in most counties. Planting was, therefore, erratic with farmers experiencing poor germination and were forced to re-plant. Of the prepared land, about 80 per cent was planted with cereals. Farmers in most ASAL counties, parts of Lower Eastern, Coast and North Eastern regions did not plant or achieve any crop harvests. Prices of farm inputs, especially fertilisers, have remained high, ranging from Ksh6,000 to Ksh6,500 per 50-kilogramme bag until the subsidy was introduced for the short rains crops to cushion farmers when this Government took office sometime this year. In order to avert this situation, the Government has planned to extend the provision of fertiliser subsidies for the long rain season. The Ministry has also been availing pesticides and sprayers to contain the spread of armyworms, in addition to training field extension officers. Hon. Speaker, on the short rains season performance, the current season has performed poorly, characterised by delayed onset and erratic rainfall. The Eastern and Coastal regions have experienced delayed and irregular planting. Overall, the poor short rains will lower crop production, further threatening food security in the coming year, including availability of livestock feeds. The prices of most staple food stuffs remain quite high above the long-term average, and regional prices are also reportedly high. Normally, the Government allows importation of white non-GMO maize with or without Import Duty to cover for the shortfall in local production. However, the white non-GMO maize has been scarce as is mainly sourced from Mexico, the East African Community (EAC) and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) regions at a premium price. These restrictions prevent the country from getting adequate flow of maize. It is against this background that the Ministry, through a Cabinet Memo, requested the Cabinet to lift the ban and approve the importation of GMO maize grown for human consumption and in the long-term allow cultivation of GMO maize varieties. This follows the completion of safety assessment conducted by the National Biosafety Authority and variety performance evaluation carried out by the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Services (KEPHIS). The recent national performance trials by our competent authorities have demonstrated that some biotechnology products have economic, health and social benefits we can tap on, including drought resistance, pest resistance, disease resistance, high yielding and nutrient dense food commodities. These traits could reduce the cost of production, improve nutrition and increase farmer incomes compared to the current conventional varieties."
}