Uasin Gishu Governor Jackson Mandago addressing the press in Eldoret town, Saturday, January 13, 2017. [Photo: Elvanis Ronoh]
Uasin Gishu Governor Jackson Mandago has asked the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) to hasten the payment of farmers who have supplied their maize produce.
He said they should fast-track the process of paying farmers since they are suffering.
“NCPB needs to style up and pay farmers promptly because they have expenses to meet, including preparing fields for next sowing and also paying fees for their children,” he said in Eldoret town, Saturday.
“As leaders from this region, we are not happy with the way NCPB are conducting their job. For heaven sake how can a farmer stay for a month after delivering their maize without pay? We want CS Willy Bett to intervene,” he added.
He, however, urged President Uhuru Kenyatta to pay off loans that Uasin Gishu farmers owe the Agricultural Finance Corporation (AFC).
The call comes after the government wiped off loans that farmers owed the Coffee Board of Kenya about two years ago.
“Climate change and infestation of fall armyworm as among factors that caused farmers' inability to honor their borrowing,” noted governor Mandago.