President Wiliam Ruto’s efforts to register Kenyan farmers and streamline government services to the country's agriculture sector were challenged shortly after the exercise commenced.
This was after the Kenya National Farmers' Federation (KENAFF) on Saturday, January 7, raised questions about the government’s plan to register farmers through the Ministry of Interior.
According to the Federation, the process was not being conducted correctly as it was not a function of the Ministry of Interior and the National government.
“Registration process should be a preserve of farmers themselves through their federations,” KENAFF indicated in a statement.
The Federation noted that the Crops Act number 16 of 2013 mandates the Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) to, in liaison with the relevant stakeholders, undertake the registration of primary producers.
Furthermore, the Federation announced that it already has a database of approximately 1.6 million farmers and an elaborate structure stretching from the ward, and sub-county to the national level.
“Reconsider the registration process of the agriculture and food authority in our support,” the KNAFF pleaded with the Ministry of Agriculture.
The countrywide farmers' registration process kicked off on January 4.
Speaking during the beginning of the training, Agriculture Cabinet Secretary(CS) Mithika Linturi announced that the exercise would enable the government to increase food production in the country.
He added that the data from the exercise would end the unresolved issue of fertilizer and seed distribution to rural areas in the country.
Training of chiefs and their assistants will help them acquire skills on how to use the digital registration tablets to register farmers so that they can access fertilizer at subsidized prices.
Linturi indicated that the database will support planning decisions on agriculture by providing correct information on the number of farmers in the country.
