This archive report was first published on 19 July 2019.
As the maize crisis deepens in Kenya, it has become clear that the blame game is just a smokescreen for a more serious issue - the lack of leadership and transparency in addressing the problem.
Since May, Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mwangi Kiunjuri has been flip-flopping on the issue, making spurious statements and changing positions. On one hand, he claimed that the food situation was stable and refused to authorize imports, only to later admit that the country was facing huge deficits that would necessitate bringing in over 10 million bags of maize.
However, the deficit is disputed, with the Strategic Food Reserve Board putting it at two million bags. The board also projects that farmers will be harvesting in the next two months, which will stabilize the food situation. The real issue is that farmers have been withholding large stocks of maize due to a lack of confidence in the National Cereals and Produce Board, which underpays them and takes too long to disburse cash.
Furthermore, there is confusion over the magnitude of the food crisis, made worse by delayed rains this year. In Parliament this week, there were worrying developments, including questions about cash withdrawn clandestinely from the Strategic Food Reserve Trust Fund for maize imports. Ideally, such cash should be reserved to pay farmers and pending bills that run into billions.
Additionally, members of the Parliamentary Agriculture Committee claim that a consignment of maize imports may be headed to our shores, a fact disputed by Mr. Kiunjuri. This needs to be investigated.
At the macro-level, the perennial food deficit presents a subject for serious discussion. The country suffers recurrent food shortages attributed to insufficient rains, pest infestations, poor post-harvesting crop handling, and lack of markets. Yet, we have the capacity for food sufficiency through improved and technology-driven agriculture.
It is time for Mr. Kiunjuri to provide an objective assessment of the food situation and initiate strategic interventions to avert hunger.
