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{
    "id": 1242826,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1242826/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 308,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Maanzo",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13589,
        "legal_name": "Maanzo Daniel Kitonga",
        "slug": "maanzo-daniel-kitonga"
    },
    "content": "Cotton can persevere dry seasons. If you make cotton growing better, they will start growing it. They have ginneries around Busia and they are looking forward to this. One of the ways of managing this is through the cooperative movement. Cooperatives in Kenya can cooperate with other cooperatives abroad. That will get rid of the brokers, which means that we will do our own ginning and spinning and deal with the final product which is clothing. Therefore, the Government has to take the cooperatives seriously because there are countries which have succeeded in growing this plant such as India and Israel. In Israel, they have Kibbutz and Moshav. Kibbutz grows the plants and Moshav Market is a cooperative. We need to help and regularize through the cooperatives where they will look for the seeds and farmers will help one another. We also need to form SACCOs for cotton growing farmers, so that they can save money when they are paid. That will enable them to acquire capital quickly when they need it. The good thing about the cooperative movement is that it begins from the grassroots. However, in Kenya, it is national. We have the Kenya Union of Savings and Credit Co-operatives (KUSCCO) which is a national body. Internationally, we have the World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU) which deals with financing. When you talk about agriculture and business cooperatives, we have the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA). The WOCCU usually gives grants to help small and upcoming cooperatives. Therefore, a struggling cotton farming cooperative can easily get international grants to stabilize and grow. The cooperatives cooperate with other cooperatives. When CIC Insurance Group was down, it was helped by a similar cooperative under the leadership of Mr. Collier from Canada. They took over CIC Insurance Group, which I am proudly part of because they are reliable, and it was revived. Now that we have bigger cooperatives in other parts of the world, they can help us revive our cooperatives here. That is how the Government can be assisted if they do not want to have like the Tanzanian Model of funding the cotton farmer from the grassroots to the top. Under the ICA, there are many other cooperatives in Asia and other places which grow cotton. They cooperate and determine the world prices. Therefore, farmers will not be exploited because that is what led to cotton farmers becoming miserable. I am aware that coastal region is looking forward to this crop. Taita-Taveta and the three counties in Ukambani are also looking forward to it. Farmers and their children will be busy. We will not have idlers because people will be busy either picking or planting cotton. This Bill must come up with a regulation to guide farmers on the planting season, so that the whole country plants cotton at the same time. Madam Temporary Speaker, extension officers are critical. They will be needed to advise farmers how and what to spray. The country is now encouraging organic spray for environmental reasons. When I was young, excessive spraying of cotton would kill insects, snakes and many other small animals. As a result, cause more damage."
}