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{
    "id": 577993,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/577993/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 109,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Mwaura",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13129,
        "legal_name": "Isaac Maigua Mwaura",
        "slug": "isaac-mwaura"
    },
    "content": "diseases especially cancer. We need to ask ourselves whether when we serve an animal some food that is not good then it will eventually come to human beings. The other key aspect of this Bill is the issue of fertilizers. If you look at many of our farms, you will find that they are small-holder and they have been farmed for a very long time to the extent that the yields have really reduced. If you look at the period that is required for yields to mature, you will find that it is taking longer and longer and the farms are becoming smaller and smaller. Therefore, it is very important to ensure that we regulate this sector very well so that our farmers can also be monitored so that whatever they put into the soil helps in the yields. It is a very lucrative business because our economy is clearly driven to a very large extent by agriculture. We have had situations where farmers have been sold the wrong fertilizer and sometimes they do not know how to go about administering the same to the crops. This has affected their output and the level of poverty. If they depend on subsistence agriculture, it also calls upon us, as Parliament, to ensure that we protect our farmers. There have been very many issues that have been canvassed with regard to fertilizer. Parliament has discussed the issue of Ken-Ren which seems not to have been concluded. We have discussed the issue of illegal importation of fertilizers being put in gunny bags that are from Government. These are some of the issues that we need to check. If this Bill is passed, this sector is going to be properly regulated so that we do not mortgage our farmers to the highest bidder and middlemen. It is time we looked at this section of the society. Most Members of Parliament have been raised on these small farms. We have gone to school based on the way our parents have used money from the processing of cash crops such as maize, coffee, cotton; although it has gone down; tea and sugar. It is very important to ensure that we protect our farmers. We also need to look at the young professionals who are coming from our universities and are studying animal health. They have been having challenges with regard to their own certification and trading with their skills. That is a big issue because you will find that older professionals do not want them into the service because they feel threatened. That is an issue that, maybe at a later date, although not directly related to this Bill, we need to canvass. They have come to my office complaining that they are told the courses they have taken are not adequate and, therefore, they do not qualify for registration as and when they graduate. With those many remarks, I rise to support the Report of the amended version of the Bill."
}