Claims of scarce State fertiliser in Laikipia

Farmers in Laikipia will be forced to buy expensive fertiliser from private dealers after the county received only 2,400 bags of the government’s subsidised one.

The number of bags is a drop in the ocean compared to 52,000 farmers who registered with the Ministry of Agriculture to benefit. Private dealers are cashing in on the inadequate availability of affordable fertiliser, and are sending SMSs to farmers, claiming the fertiliser was available in their shop, a move the County Commissioner Joseph Kanyiri termed as fraud.

“We have been able to register 52,000 farmers who are set to benefit from the voucher system of getting affordable government fertiliser. We are urging our farmers to get the fertilisers from the national cereals board depots in the county and not from any other stall as they have been informed from the text messages that have been circulating,” the administrator said.

He spoke when he hosted the PS for Correctional Services Mary Muthoni, for a tree planting ceremony at Kauka village of Marmanet Forest on Tuesday.

Kanyiri threatened to have those sending the SMS arrested. He told the farmers to ignore the text messages that they have been receiving “from the swindlers and instead wait for messages from the National government and announcements by local chiefs”.

Already, the farmers who are in rush to plant during the current planting season are buying the popular DAP type of fertiliser at Sh5,500 from the dealers.