Maizefarmers in Kenya have been crying foralong time now after the many setbacs they suffer following their hardwork in the farms only to end up with unsold maize hurting their investmntan blocking their profits.
Among the causes of their problems is the existance of maize cartels.Well finally a plan to kickout maize cartels has been laid down by the government
The government is banking on regional and county commissioners who will see the formation of committees that will vet maize farmers on their farms prior to delivery of produce to the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB).
Strategic Food Reserve Trust Fund CEO Omar Salat on Thursday held a meeting with Rift Valley Regional Coordinator Mongo Chimwanga and County Commissioners from the maize growing counties to deliberate on the implementation of the new strategy.
Deputy County Commissioners will chair the vetting committees which will comprise of a Sub County Agricultural Officer as the secretary while Sub County Administrator and a representative of farmers cooperatives will be members.
A farmer intending to sell their maize to the NCPB shall be required to first fill the Application for Maize Purchase by National Government form with vital details that the committee shall verify.
Salat said the committees will deal away with unstructured delivery of maize to the NCPB which previously received the produce on first come first served basis making the depots chaotic with long queues.
The trust fund has also specified allocation quotas for the selected thirteen counties which have been identified to have had surplus production. The specification has been taken seriously to include a selected sub counties in some counties.
The Fund has inaddition placed a cap on the maximum number of bags a single farmer can supply at 400 bags of 90kgs each which shall be delivered to nearest NCPB depot or an aggregation center as advised by the committee.