Kisii County is the biggest winner in the latest investments by the Government of the United States of America in Kenya. US Ambassador Meg Whitman on Tuesday announced a pack of investment programs that will be channeled towards the county.
According to the Ambassador, the US Government has invested Ksh10.3 billion in various projects and programs in Kisii County to create jobs and boost the lives of its residents.
Speaking after a meeting with Kisii Governor Simba Arati, the Ambassador noted that the programs included health and pharmaceutical services, agriculture, sanitation, technology, manufacturing, democracy, and governance through various US-funded agencies.
The ambassador revealed that the US was particularly invested in creating jobs for the youth in Kisii including the revival of the growth of pyrethrum, which is in high demand worldwide.
“The US Government is funding agro-processing in banana and avocado factories. We also want to support the government in reviving the pyrethrum sector,” noted the Ambassador during her tour.
In the process, Whitman disclosed that the parties involved are looking into employing 100,000 youth in its new project of reviving pyrethrum growth.
She added that an American company went to Nakuru to find farmers who could start production facilities for the crop.
"We have connected (the company) with Kisii to figure out where we can grow the pyrethrum. The company wants to recruit 100,000 farmers to grow pyrethrum. They have already recruited 36,000," she revealed.
In the new employment pact, Whitman assured the residents that middlemen had been removed from the equation since would be paying farmers directly. The farmers will also be paid every two weeks.
She had paid a courtesy call from Governor Simba Arati and was inspecting several projects in the county funded by the US Government where she assured the residents that the US government would continue supporting the county.
She noted pyrethrum has an important ingredient in producing organic pesticides, which, she noted has a high demand in the American and European markets, stressing that the US government will support the sector.
