Kilifi revives cassava farming in bid to tame food insecurity
By People.Reporter, April 11, 2023
The county government of Kilifi has developed a mechanism to revive cassava farming in Kilifi and make it a commercial venture.
County Agriculture Executive Patterson Chula said plans have been made to complete the stalled cassava processing factory in Tezo.
Speaking during the Vijana Agribiz trade fair, Chula said the county is purchasing Sh1.5 million in cassava cuttings to distribute to farmers across the County.
“Kilifi is food insecure. This has been largely contributed by the erratic rainfall weather patterns and the over-reliance on maize. We are now starting a serious campaign to encourage people to plant cassava because it is drought-tolerant and a good cash crop. We will distribute 1,583,330 cassava cuttings this season and we will continue scaling up until we make Kilifi food secure,” he said.
The Agriculture chief said the contractor for the cassava processing factory will resume the installation of the machinery.