The country has a rice deficit of 300,000 metric tonnes occasioning the importation of more rice from outside the country, a cabinet secretary has said.
Water and Irrigation CS Eugene Wamalwa on Tuesday said the country has rice demand standing at 450,000 metric tonnes.
Wamalwa said the country has no option but to import rice to bridge the deficit gap.
“We have a deficit that will only be met if we import rice from other countries,” he said.
He was responding to Nyando MP Fred Outa who appealed to his ministry to monitor the importation of cheap rice into the country.
Speaking at Ahero Irrigation Scheme, Wamalwa announced that the government is putting investments in the scheme to be able to produce more rice.
He said modernisation of the irrigation scheme is on-going to make it vibrant and enable farmers to earn more from the produce.
“A lot of things are being done in the scheme to help farmers and improve on how they farm with an aim of producing more rice,” he said.
Wamalwa cited the partnership the government is having with Japan International Cooperation Agency where the latter has given out farm machinery in the scheme.
He said the farm machines are subsidised and the county government will assist farmers to pay the 40 percent for the machinery.