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{
    "id": 352536,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/352536/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 96,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "April 18, 2013 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 10 Hon. Baiya",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Mr. Speaker, Sir, allow me to also take this opportunity to congratulate you for being elected to the Office of the Speaker. I also want to extend my appreciation to the people of Githunguri, who have given me the opportunity to serve them for the second time. Concerning the Presidential Address to this House, I would also like to join my colleagues in lauding the President for his very able exposition of Government policy and strategy. There is no doubt that the President’s Address was quite ambitious. However, it is also good to understand that this arises from the myriad of challenges that the country is facing, which calls for exceptional measures. The President was quite alive to the realities of the global economic challenges being experienced worldwide. Challenges like those being experienced in Europe affect us directly since those countries serve as the market for our cash crops such as tea, coffee, horticultural produce, among others. If we are to cope with some of those challenges, we must think about integrating ourselves within the region to enhance our regional trading opportunities, which the President spoke about. Mr. Speaker, Sir, on education, the President was alive to the fact that our young people are a very vital resource for this country. Therefore, we are going to use our resources to ensure that we produce well educated and skilled manpower base that will serve this country and our neighbouring countries. So, the issue of giving laptop computers to school children is a matter of strategic significance for this country. I am sure that the Government will ensure that all the concerns being raised are addressed, so that the project becomes a success. There was another promise that the Jubilee Coalition gave during its presidential campaign – that is introduction of a free milk programme for school children. However, there was no mention of this promise in the President’s Address. Part of the strategy of supporting education in this country should be supporting a school feeding programme. Previously, we have seen Government efforts to support students in schools, especially in ASAL areas, through a school feeding programme. A school feeding programme facilitates highly in terms of student retention in school. Therefore, the Government must not back-track on its promise to provide milk to school children. Instead, it should extend this policy to include secondary schools. We have seen that there is already a feeding programme covering all the students in day secondary schools in my constituency. The point is that the pangs of hunger do not know the boundary between primary and secondary school children. Therefore, the programme should be extended to cover secondary schools. The range of support should be widened to cover food items such as maize, beans, rice and even eggs. If this kind of support is provided, we will not only be assuring school children of a conducive learning environment but we will also be supporting farmers, who will produce for local supply and, therefore, create more opportunities for commercial agriculture, employment and wealth creation for the whole country. Farmers in my constituency have always used their arable land to grow traditional export crops such as tea and coffee. They are now asking what the Government can do to enable them benefit more from these crops."
}