{"count":1608389,"next":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/?format=json&page=153168","previous":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/?format=json&page=153166","results":[{"id":1549862,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1549862/?format=json","text_counter":141,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Hon. Omboko Milemba","speaker_title":"The Temporary Speaker","speaker":{"id":13328,"legal_name":"Jeremiah Omboko Milemba","slug":"jeremiah-omboko-milemba"},"content":" Very well. That should suffice. Let us close that debate. We have a lot of business ahead. Before we move to the next Statement, let me acknowledge the presence of schools in the Speaker’s Gallery. They are: St. Marks Girls, Cherangany Constituency, Trans Nzoia County and Taita Mauche Secondary School, Njoro Constituency, Nakuru County. Let me allow the Member for Njoro Constituency, Hon. Charity Kathambi, to say a word in a minute and welcome all the schools."},{"id":1549863,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1549863/?format=json","text_counter":142,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Njoro, UDA","speaker_title":"Hon. Charity Chepkwony","speaker":null,"content":" Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker for giving me time to appreciate one of the best schools from my Constituency, Taita Mauche Secondary School. I wish them all the best. My children, when you go back, work hard. For you to be a Member of Parliament, you need to work hard. There are more schools outside which are yet to come in: Utafiti Comprehensive and Mukugogo schools. Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker for granting us this opportunity. My children, go home and work very hard. Njoro is a place where we have said education is number one in making people better."},{"id":1549864,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1549864/?format=json","text_counter":143,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Hon. Omboko Milemba","speaker_title":"The Temporary Speaker","speaker":{"id":13328,"legal_name":"Jeremiah Omboko Milemba","slug":"jeremiah-omboko-milemba"},"content":" Very well. We move to the next request for statement by Hon. Rebecca Tonkei. It is being replied to by the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Agriculture and Livestock. Is he in the House? I am told the Vice- Chairman is in the House and ready to reply. Vice-Chairman, you may proceed."},{"id":1549865,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1549865/?format=json","text_counter":144,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Hon. Omboko Milemba","speaker_title":"The Temporary Speaker","speaker":{"id":13328,"legal_name":"Jeremiah Omboko Milemba","slug":"jeremiah-omboko-milemba"},"content":"ALLEGED VIOLATION OF AGREEMENT BETWEEN The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."},{"id":1549866,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1549866/?format=json","text_counter":145,"type":"heading","speaker_name":"","speaker_title":"","speaker":null,"content":"CEREAL GROWERS AND CEREAL MILLERS"},{"id":1549867,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1549867/?format=json","text_counter":146,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Konoin, UDA","speaker_title":"Hon. Brighton Yegon","speaker":null,"content":" Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Speaker. Pursuant to Standing Order 44(2)(c), Hon. Rebecca Tonkei requested for a statement on 26th February 2025, regarding alleged violation of the 2008 agreement between the Cereal Growers Association (CGA) and Cereal Millers Association (CMA) on wheat uptake. The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development responded to the issues raised in the request as follows: 1. A report on the national wheat demand revealed the quantity of wheat harvested in the current season in the country, including Narok County, vis-à-vis CMA uptake. The national wheat demand is between 2.2 and 2.4 million metric tonnes. The annual wheat production in 2023 was 135,000 metric tonnes. From July 2024 to March 2025, approximately 153,932 metric tonnes were harvested. Millers had mopped up 124,989 metric tonnes from August 2024 to March 2025. The total wheat held by farmers and marketing agents was about 28,944 metric tonnes. Some farmers in upper Narok and Timau had not harvested their wheat. The projected amount of wheat to be harvested in those regions was about 800,000 bags, which translates to 7,200 metric tonnes. In the last eight months, the total amount of wheat imported was 1,407,129 metric tonnes, against the projected allocation of 3,246,000 metric tonnes. 2. On the steps the Ministry is taking to cause millers to adhere to the 2008 Agreement to purchase locally produced wheat in the current harvesting season before importing more wheat to bridge the deficit, the Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture and Livestock Development held meetings with stakeholders on 26th February 2025 and 3rd March 2025 to discuss and resolve issues of wheat uptake. During the meetings, the Cabinet Secretary directed farmers and aggregators to deliver their wheat stocks to the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB). Farmers will be paid by NCPB within 30 days after millers have paid for the wheat collected from the NCPB depots. To ensure adherence to and compliance with the 2008 Agreement, the Ministry, through the Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA), is monitoring compliance by all millers. Millers will be allocated quotas of local wheat to purchase before they are allowed to import wheat. This initiative will regulate volumes of imported wheat and ensure millers import during a period of deficit to avoid flooding local market with cheap imported wheat. 3. The third part of the request sought the measures in place to enforce the Agreement in future and to uphold its integrity and promote fair trade in the agriculture sector and to protect local wheat farmers from unfair market access due to unregulated wheat importation. Millers will be allocated quotas of local wheat to purchase based on the capacity of individual millers. Millers were directed to submit to the National Treasury and the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development on a weekly basis the quantities of wheat grain purchased from local farmers. The National Treasury will not approve importation of wheat by millers who shall not comply with the commitment to buy local wheat grain based on their capacity. CGA will provide regular data on the quantity and areas where wheat grains are available for purchase by millers. Farmers’ representatives, millers and the Ministry will hold annual meetings to agree on a minimum price per bag of wheat grain to avoid exploitation of farmers by millers. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."},{"id":1549868,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1549868/?format=json","text_counter":147,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Konoin, UDA","speaker_title":"Hon. Brighton Yegon","speaker":null,"content":"4. The fourth part of the request sought support mechanisms being considered to assist farmers in the country, particularly those in the upper Narok region that are currently facing likely losses due to approximately 1,500 metric tonnes of unsold wheat stocks. The Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture and Livestock Development directed farmers and aggregators to deliver their wheat stock to the NCPB from 4th March 2025. Farmers will be paid by NCPB within 30 days after millers have paid for the wheat collected from the NCPB depots. This will also reduce post-harvest losses due to poor storage. A memorandum of understanding was signed between NCPB and millers for wheat at NCPB to be collected by millers and payment done within 14 to 21 days. Only wheat produced by farmers within Kenya will be taken to NCPB to avoid delivery of imported wheat to NCPB. Lastly, the request for a statement sought to find out the interventions that the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development intends to take to cushion wheat farmers in Narok County from losing their property through bank auctions for non-performing loans arising from poor market conditions. The response is as follows: 1. Improving the price of locally produced wheat. The Ministry has set the minimum price of Ksh5,300 for Grade 1 wheat and Ksh5,200 for Grade 2 wheat. 2. Farmers will be paid within 30 days upon delivery of wheat to the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) depots."},{"id":1549869,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1549869/?format=json","text_counter":148,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Hon. Omboko Milemba","speaker_title":"The Temporary Speaker","speaker":{"id":13328,"legal_name":"Jeremiah Omboko Milemba","slug":"jeremiah-omboko-milemba"},"content":" Hon. Rebecca Tonkei."},{"id":1549870,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1549870/?format=json","text_counter":149,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Narok County, UDA","speaker_title":"Hon. Rebecca Tonkei","speaker":null,"content":" Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. The reply to my request is not satisfactory at all. It is unfortunate that wheat belonging to farmers in Narok County is still in stores because they were instructed to take it to the NCPB. The Cabinet Secretary sat with the farmers and an agreement was struck that wheat would be picked from the NCPB. The farmers took their wheat to the NCPB and to date, only four lorries of wheat were collected. It is unfortunate that our Cabinet Secretary can sit with the farmers and nothing has happened after two and a half months. I do not know where the farmers and the people who are struggling with loans from banks will run to. People took their wheat to the millers, they have loans in the banks, but nobody has bought the wheat. My people in Narok County are suffering. The farmers have taken loans. They have received no payment and are a desperate lot. They cannot even prepare their farms because they do not have money for farming in the next season. That answer is unsatisfactory. Our Cabinet Secretary should speak facts so that we do not just get answers that amount to nothing. It is not fair to the people that we represent or to us as Members of Parliament."},{"id":1549871,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1549871/?format=json","text_counter":150,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Hon. Omboko Milemba","speaker_title":"The Temporary Speaker","speaker":{"id":13328,"legal_name":"Jeremiah Omboko Milemba","slug":"jeremiah-omboko-milemba"},"content":" That request for a statement was quite emotive. Is it true that nothing is happening in terms of the marketing of wheat? We saw the farmers on the road with their tractors. Yes, Hon. Chairperson."}]}