The ministry of agriculture has revealed plans to supply subsidized fertilizer directly to farmers.
Cabinet Secretary Mwangi Kiunjuri says the move is part of the government’s efforts to cut cartels in the sector who have been taking advantage of farmers.
Speaking in Eldoret town on Saturday, Kiunjuri said the government was considering directly supplied fertilizer to farmers from the Mombasa depot.
“We are looking at the possibility of having the subsidized fertilizer directly delivered to farmers once it reached the dock in Mombasa,” said Kiunjuri.
“This I believe will go a long way towards addressing the cartel issue which has been a major challenge to our farmers when it comes to accessing the subsidized fertilizer,” he added.
The government has been using the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) as distribution centers for the fertilizer since the subsidy was launched.
However, some NCPB officials have always been accused of colluding with unscrupulous businesspersons whereby they are sold the subsidized fertilizer which they repackage and later sell at a higher price to unsuspecting farmers.