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"content": "move on to agro-processing. That, I believe, is the way developed countries went, and they have attained industrialization. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I would like to remind our Minister, because he has really learnt well, and he has got professionals in that area, that sometimes, they should also look at the past and see what has been done. There used to be Guaranteed Minimum Returns (GMR) scheme in case of crop failure. I would like to ask our Minister that he does all he can to re-engineer insurance for crops, so that when rains fail, there will be some resource somewhere, and the Ministry will be able to support our farmers. For that reason, I would also like to appeal to him, that instead of looking at some of the traditional crops like maize, we now start moving to high value crops, so that farmers can have income. They should only get enough money to buy the maize to sustain them. We seem to be growing, year in, year out, food crops that we know about. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, the Minister has talked of climate change. I agree with him that we are facing a very major problem. However, alongside that climate change, I would like our Minister to also get in touch with the Minister for Lands, because of the land tenure policy. High potential areas are being sub-divided into very uneconomical portions, so that even the 10 per cent forest cover you are looking for will not be attained there. So, I would like him to look into our land tenure policy, because high potential areas are being sub-divided to such an extent that planting trees there will be very difficult. I also want to inform the Minister that, in addition to what he is doing â I agree with him on provision of farm inputs â a bit of controls should be put in place. We went to Malindi and found that AMS has sent tractors there without implements. For one year, those new tractors have been there. Some of them are being vandalised. I would like to appeal to the Minister that whenever he sends something to the field, there is a follow up to make sure that farmers get the services for which those implements are bought. We also found crawlers that have been sent to irrigation schemes. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I would like to agree with the Chairman of our Committee that when you go to irrigation schemes, you find engineers for dams. You do not find extension services officers. Could the Minister decide to take over the role of producing crops there? I was very disappointed when money was sent to those areas for food production, but the Minister for Agriculture had a peripheral role in terms of producing that food. Therefore, I would like him to be the one spearheading food production. Finally, in the rural areas, where the white settlers were â I am sure the Minister comes from those areas â there were so many dams created. We are importing food from South Africa, produced using their dams. Why do we not re-do the dams in those areas and start increasing food production? Therefore, I believe that this Ministry has the capacity. At one time, when you said âThe Ministryâ, it was known it was the Ministry of Agriculture. Today I do not know whether when you say âThe Ministryâ it means the Ministry of Agriculture. We want the old glory to come to it, so that food will no longer be a problem. With those remarks, I beg to support."
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