Agriculture Principal Secretary Richard Lesiyampe. [Photo/the-star.co.ke]
The government will start issuing subsidised fertiliser to maize farmers from January, Agriculture PS Richard Lesiyampe has said.
Lesiyampe said they are targeting both small and large-scale farmers in the subsidy fertiliser programmes.
"The initiative seeks to boost production and meet the rising deficit in the country," he said on Saturday.
The move comes amid reports that the country was facing an annual shortage of 10 million bags of maize.
A week ago, Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Willy Bett announced raft measures meant to increase maize production and end importation.
"The government will map crop production regions according to their suitability for the specific crops and concentrate on maize production," he said, as quoted by The Standard.
The CS said the government will boost farmers to produce more maize by injecting more funds into the sector.
"The ministry has already secured Sh10 billion credit line for mechanisation programme expected to take effect from 2018 cropping season," Bett added.