Kenyans advised to embrace irrigation to increase food production

By Robert Mutasi 

The Kilifi County government has requested that farmers use irrigation techniques rather than depending solely on rainfall patterns to increase food production.

In order to address the issue of the unpredictable rainfall, the County Government through the Department of Agriculture and Crops is urging farmers to employ the technique. 

Speaking to the press in Tezo, Kilifi, on Monday, August 19, 2024, Chief Officer of Department of Agriculture and Crops Teddy Yawa, said the county is aiming at producing surplus food to enhance food security.

Yawa claimed that the farmers' low harvest rate was caused by insufficient rainfall. 

The county started providing farmers with hand pumps and dam liners for irrigation projects. 

According to Yawa, the irrigation techniques will support local farmers in protecting their produce from spoilage. 

"Through our project, we have been able to provide farmers who have dug ponds to spray plants with water, these hand pumps and dam liners, all of these are under the arrangement of being able to help farmers not rely on God's rain, and then also being able to help farmers store their crops well so that use them for a long time," he stated.

According to Yawa, the project will enable the majority of farmers to practice farming throughout the year. 

The region is known for receiving little rainfall which is challenging to the farmers who depend on rainfall. 

The county wants farmers' produce to grow by at least 5% a year.