The Former Opposition leader Raila Odinga has been honored big time by Agricultural researchers.
The first name of ODM leader Raila Odinga is among those picked to identify bean varieties developed during an eight-year research to improve agricultural yields in five counties.
The bean is one of the popular varieties identified as best suited for growing in coffee zones and lower regions in Tharaka Nithi, Embu and Meru counties.
Researchers said farmers had named it ‘Raila’ because of its crisp, dark tone that is similar to the pigmentation of the opposition leader.
The name was unveiled during an Australian-funded project called the Maize-Legume Cropping Systems for Food Security in Eastern and Southern Africa (Simlesa).
The project, which was being run by the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation (Kalro) was conducted in the eastern Kenya counties as well as in Bungoma and Siaya in western Kenya.
Farmers are routinely asked to suggest names for crop varieties developed by Kalro. Previous names picked for other popular varieties include ‘Mwende’ – a Kamba name for a girl – for a bean variety that has little gas when cooked.P