Parliament has stepped up its quest to professionalise the agricultural sector through a review of the legal framework on individuals tasked with offering advisory services to farmers across the country.

Speaking in parliament while deliberating on the Agricultural Professional and Registration Bill of 2024, which entered its second reading, MP John Mutunga stated that the bill would ensure ethical standards and competencies through professional advisory.

Streamline

“This bill is meant to enhance professional standards, promote ethical practices, and strengthen accountability in the agricultural sector,” he stated.

“We seek to address the long-standing gap in the regulation of agricultural professionals and technicians by providing a framework similar to those that already exist for other professional bodies such as engineers, paramedics, lawyers, and others,” he stated.

“As we speak, we do not know who the agricultural advisers are. The professions are unregulated. We want to ensure only qualified personnel are given the responsibility and undertake agricultural advisory.

The MP noted instances in local agroverts where a lot of advisory input to local farmers was being done by people of questionable backgrounds.

He noted that the bill would provide for the establishment of the Agriculture Professionals and Technicians Registration and Licensing Council, tasked with registering professionals in the sector.

Professional’s definition

It will also provide the registration of a registrar, who will provide a record of all licensed professionals and technicians in the sector for reference purposes to ensure only licensed persons are tasked with the role,” he stated.

The bill defines them as a holder of a degree, diploma, or certificate in an agricultural speciality (crop production, horticulture, plant breeding, seed technology, agronomy, botany, crop science, food science, agricultural economics, agribusiness, floriculture, biotechnology, soil & water engineering, or agroforestry) from an institution recognised by the board who has attained a university degree in agriculture or a related field.

Misconception

The MP further clarified that the bill was not meant to target farmers as claimed in social media, but advisors and agricultural professionals.

He refuted that the farmers would need to be registered and pay a fee, as claimed by many.

The bill was first introduced in parliament on April 23, 2024.