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{
    "id": 1569770,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1569770/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 238,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Tinderet, UDA",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Julius Melly",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": " Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I support this Bill. I thank the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Agriculture and Livestock in the sense that this Bill will transform this country. Agricultural extension officers are the backbone of most agricultural economies worldwide. The good work they do leads to increased food production, foreign exchange earnings for nations and, more importantly, an increase in the income of those involved in agricultural activities. An agricultural extension officer has a lot of activities in livestock keeping, dairy farming and crop production. He is very important in the following ways. One, he educates the farmers on modern farming techniques, modern scientific ways of controlling pests and more importantly, engaging in proper seeds propagation. With all these activities, the farmer gets more income and by extension, the country gets the much-needed food. Farmers will get income to run their daily activities, pay school fees and do other things. Thirdly, the country will save on foreign exchange as it will not import food. We know that Kenya was the breadbasket of the region in the 1960s and 1970s. Back then, agricultural extension officers were found in almost every location. I grew up seeing extension officers in very good khaki uniforms across the villages. They would tell farmers how best to plant their seeds and organised them into cooperatives where they were able to save. Farmers were able to market their crops very well. We have forgotten what we saw when we were growing up, but we need to make agricultural extension officers part and parcel of life. I have seen the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development trying to reinvent the wheel. You cannot reinvent the wheel in this sector without extension officers. Extension officers are the nerve centre that will transform this country. We can be sugar, coffee and tea exporters and do marvellous things. Kenya has grown over the years in terms of agricultural production. Look at the case of meat. In the 1960s and 1970s, many countries bench-marked with our country, and we were at the top. However, we are doing very poorly today because extension officers have been neglected. They are no longer the core of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development. I ask this House to ensure that all the county governments and the national Government make it mandatory for all agricultural areas in this country to have extension officers because agriculture is the backbone of our country. Lastly, extension officers in arid and semi-arid lands (ASALs) act as early warning systems. In case they foresee challenges in rainfall quantities, they can warn farmers early to sell their livestock. They will tell them when to stock grass and how to cope with water shortages. Hon. Mutunga, let us actualise the agriculture and livestock extension services as soon as possible. I support the Bill."
}