Contextualizing Kenya’s Agricultural Sector Development Strategy

By Sitati Wasilwa

Over the years, the agricultural sector has been the leading sector in Kenya’s economy. Several agricultural policies have been formulated accelerate growth in the sector. Some of the noticeable policies include the Strategy for Revitalizing Agriculture of 2004 and Vision 2030. The Agricultural Sector Development Strategy was formulated to cover the period 2010 to 2020.

The main objective of Vision 2030 is to enable Kenya attain the middle-income status. In this particular development blueprint, the manufacturing sector is anticipated to be the leading sector. However, it is impossible to have a strong manufacturing and industrial base if a strong foundation for the agricultural sector is not established. It should be noted that agriculture contributes directly 26% of the Gross Domestic Product and about 25% of GDP indirectly. It also accounts for 65% of Kenya’s total exports and more than 70% of employment opportunities in rural areas.

In promoting robust growth in the agricultural sector, the government of the day and the would be successive governments need to pay attention to certain fundamental aspects. The starting point is by ensuring that budgetary allocation for the sector is increased not marginally but substantially. Kenya’s allocation to the agricultural sector in the national budget can be termed as meager considering that it is below 10% of the total national budget.

Budgetary allocations to the sector have to be aligned with the Maputo Declaration on Agriculture and Food Security of 2003 formulated under the auspices of the African Union. This declaration sought to compel the African governments to at least have 10% of their total national budgets going towards the agricultural sector.

To establish a vibrant manufacturing sector in Kenya, it is vital to develop agro-based industries. Agro-based industries will create linkages necessary for growth and development of other modern industries.

Effective training, research and development programmes are necessary for a vibrant agricultural sector. This can be done by thoroughly equipping the existing agricultural institutions in view of the curricula and programmes, and the usage of the latest but appropriate technology in training manpower. It is common nowadays to find some regions lacking field officers attending to the needs of the farmers. This situation has created a gap that has consequently led to low production and poor quality agricultural produce.

In addition, genetically modified and engineered organisms need to be introduced if we are yearning to increase levels of production and enhance food security. Genetically modified crops mature faster and have high yields thus leading to food security and high surplus.

Injecting efficiency in the agricultural state corporations is a key aspect towards achieving goals outlined of the Agricultural Sector Development Strategy. Most of these corporations have been affected by the maladministration. A general and thorough audit of these firms needs to be carried out to determine the various strategies to be used to resuscitate them.

To increase market surplus, small holder farmers need to access agricultural credit very easily and cheaply. Banks and other financial institutions need to reduce their conditionalities on loans and other inputs they offer farmers. This will increase the capital base of the farmers and with proper management there will be high yields. A lot of emphasis should be laid on the small holder farmers as they form the largest proportion of farmers nationwide.

Furthermore, reducing reliance on rain-fed agriculture is another vital aspect which the policy document under review addresses. This implies that a lot of irrigation needs to be done. The present government has made a significant step towards allocating some funds towards several irrigation projects notably the A Million Acre Scheme in order to promote food security. However, the government needs to be at the fore-front to ensure that the aquifers in Turkana County are drilled for water for irrigation to be easily available. Also other arid and semi-arid lands(ASALs) should also be effectively utilized in agricultural terms through the practical use of technology and irrigation.

The bottom line for actualization of the Agricultural Sector Development Strategy would be to focus on increasing the budgetary allocation towards the sector. Without having enough finances, then implementing all the other strategies put in place to improve the sector would remain a pipe dream.

September 25, 2014 0

The African Renaissance: A Far-Fetched Dream?

By Sitati Wasilwa

The dawn of the 21^st century was touted as Africa’s century considering the continent’s recent socio-economic and political performance. A number of gains have been realized in view of Africa’s recent economic growth which is currently rated stands at an average of 5% per year. However, the realization of the African Dream is still far-fetched with regards to various challenges and threats eclipsing Africa.

The clamor-for-independence period in the late 1950s, 1960s and even 1970s ushered an era of hope with the independence leaders charting a clear socio-economic and political paths aimed at addressing challenges such as poverty. Despite the high levels of of optimism at independence, the envisaged development cutting across the social, political and economic spectra remain a pipe-dream especially for the average citizens.

Africans need to realize Africa’s fate and destiny is in their hands. Africa is highly endowed with resources, but with a poor post-independence development track record except for few countries. So, where did the rain start beating us? Well, certain problems, most of which are internal, have over the years dragged Africa behind.

Good governance has eluded most of the African states. Poor governance is an existential challenge in the Africa is evident through the weak political leadership, weak institutions and rampant corruption.

Corruption in Africa remains a major stumbling towards realization of social, economic and political progress. It is impossible to eradicate poverty with systemic corruption. Addressing corruption would indeed be a formidable step in realization of the African Renaissance in the 21st century.

Weak institutions are a feature of governance systems and structures of African states. Anti-corruption institutions, security institutions, administrative institutions and others need to be strengthened . Therefore, to keep the African Dream on course, having strong governance institutions is inevitable.

An existential threat to realization of the African Dream is food insecurity. Being food secure as a continent will catapult a more than automatic socio-economic development. Food security would lead to a healthier population, surplus production thus boosting trade, reduction on over-reliance on donor aid, establishment of agro-based industries and creation of employment opportunities.

Volatile political environments and insecurity continue pose a great threat to the realization of the African Dream. Activities of militia groups and more recently terror groups hinder social, economic and political development. Run-away insecurity jeopardizes economic progress.

For the 21st century to truly belong to Africa, improving governance, tackling food insecurity and administrative security is imperative. But these must also be backed up by effective political leadership.

July 13, 2014 0

Rethinking Kenya’s Economic Growth and Development Trajectory

By Sitati Wasilwa

The harsh reality is that most of the problems Kenya faces today are not different from the challenges witnessed at the dawn of independence. This is a reaffirmation of the need to relook, rethink, restructure and even reposition the various policies and institutions established to promote economic growth and development.

Methinks we’ve failed to inculcate a political leadership that prioritizes broad-based economic growth and development. Kenya political is in dire need of political leadership if we are to draw parallels between Kenya and some Asian economic powerhouses. For instance, 50 years ago, Kenya’s per capita income wa $440 while Singapore’s stood at $180. Today, our per capita income is $1800 compared to Singapore’s $59800.

The poor leadership exhibited by our politicians is characterized by too much politicking. Kenyan politicians worry so much about consolidating political power at the expense of promoting a better economy that works for the many.

Kenya’s economic growth and development trajectory has been paralyzed by corruption. The failure to combat corruption is an indication of the failure of the country’s political leadership to have an economy that fairly works for all. As long as corruption is not tackled, we shall forever oscillate at the same point and attaining our economic goals will remain a mirage.

Furthermore, 51 years after gaining independence, our exports are majorly primary goods. Over 50 years of independence is a long period of time to export value-added commodities. How did China, South Korea, Japan, Thailand etc start exporting manufactured goods? These countries offer insightful lessons for Kenya to pick up and invent its own unique model that will enable exportation of value-added commodities.

A key element of progressive economic growth and development is food security. The perennial hunger and famine strikes need to be permanently addressed. Drought, hunger and famine incidences drain significant amounts of capital which would otherwise be utilized to facilitate growth in other sectors.

The various development plans need to be thoroughly scrutinized. Vision 2030, for instance, is highly ambitious but will not be fully implemented due to weak political leadership. Development planning is good subject to political goodwill. Additionally, the national and county governments development blueprints should not trigger high taxation, and the presence of so many white elephant projects.

In conclusion, Kenya’s growth and development trajectory is marred with insanity as things are done the same way with high expectations to get different results. Kenya needs a visionary political leadership to ensure that the growth and development of the economy promotes inclusivity.

June 10, 2014 0

Kenya’s Scorecard In Attaining Millennium Development Goals

By Sitati Wasilwa

The MDGs are to be attained by the year 2015 as outlined in the Millennium Declaration launched in 2000 at the United Nations General Assembly in New York. Kenya as a country participated in drafting of the Declaration and committed herself to achieve the highlighted objectives. As a country, we have made significant steps in attaining the MDGs. However, due to various externalities coupled with poor governance, the attainment of some MDGs still remains a mirage.

On the first MDG, eradication of extreme poverty and hunger, past governments and the government of the day have done little to attain this goal. Year in year out, the ASAL regions are affected by widespread hunger which has often led to starvation and death. The perennial hunger problem is arguably used as bait by politicians to gain political mileage at the expense of poor Kenyans. Irrigation initiative programmes if not backed by effective political goodwill will hardly be implemented. However,the recent launch of the One Million Acre Scheme initiated by Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration is a good move towards solving the problem of hunger only if corruption will not boggle it down. On poverty,we are not doing well either. Recent World Bank statistics point out that 45.9% of Kenyans are living below the poverty line. This is contrary to the 25% which is to attained by 2015 according to the MDGs. This clearly indicates that the gap between the rich and the poor is still very wide. Score: 3/10.

As a country, we have done well in terms of achieving universal primary education which is the second MDG. I give much credit to former President Mwai Kibaki whose brain child,the Free Primary Education(FPE) programme has really been the major driving force towards achieving this goal. However, various bottlenecks under this goal include insufficient human capital (teachers), and shortage of basic facilities and equipment such as books, good classrooms etc. The successive governments should thus ensure the enlisted challenges among others are properly addressed. Score: 7.5/10.

The third MDG seeks to promote gender equality and empower women. Kenya has performed averagely in terms of reducing gender disparity at primary, secondary and tertiary levels of education. More so, the ratio of literate females to males has significantly improved. This is effectively backed by the Constitution Chapter 4, Article 27 and Clause 3 on the a third gender rule. There has also been a marked increase in the number of seats held by women in Parliament at the national and county levels. This has been aided by the Constitution which allowed the for provision of 47 positions of Women Representatives. A descent number of women has been elected and nominated to Parliament. However, we are still yet to see an elected woman Senator and Governor. Score: 6.5/10.

The other MDG is the reduction of child mortality rate (CMR). This is an area we are doing badly. In East Africa, we are only better than Burundi whose CMR is at 104/1000 compared to Kenya’s 73/1000 according to UNICEF’s September 2013 report. Uganda’s CMR is at 69/1000,Rwanda 55/1000 and Tanzania 54/1000. However, this is a reduction from 115/1000in 2003 according to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey. This high CMR implies that deaths of children under 5 years are due to diseases such as pneumonia,malaria and diarrhea especially in the marginalised areas and regions. The Ministry of Health,to be specific,has a lot to do to lower this rate. Score: 3.5/10.

MDG 5 is concerned with the improvement in maternal health. Kenya’s Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR) by 2003 (KDHS), was at 414/100000. The year 2010, our MMR was at 488 deaths/100000 live births. However, the initiative by the Jubilee administration to offer free maternal healthcare is a positive move that demographic experts have already noted will significantly reduce the MMR. Rural folks, however, still find it quite challenging to access better maternal care because of poor roads to access the health centres. This calls for improvement in the state of the rural access roads and also the establishment of health centres in each ward countrywide. This is attainable since the health is a devolved function as per the Fourth Schedule on the Distribution of Functions between The National and County Governments.

April 5, 2014 0

The Impeachment Foolhardy: MCAs vs Governors

By Sitati Wasilwa

Promulgation of the Constitution in August 27^th 2010 signified a new era of hope especially with regards to devolution.

Initially, drafting of the current Constitution clearly set the academic threshold for one to be a Member of County Assembly. Unfortunately, the academic qualifications were expunged setting up ground for unintelligent political engagements pitting the MCAs and the Governors.

As a matter of fact, this is now proving to be futile if the wave of initiating and executing impeachments is anything to go by. MCAs in Embu, Kericho, Baringo and Elgeyo Marakwet counties have made serious attempts to impeach Governors.

Fundamentally, MCAs are without doubt infatuated with power. Giving too much power to uneducated and functionally literate politicians is a faux pas in realizing socio-economic development. On various occasions, majority of the MCAs have indicated their little understanding of the Standing Orders. The level of education largely determines the quality of assembly debates and policymaking.

More importantly, we should not forget about Governors and county executives who misuse funds. Well, corruption has been a juggernaut in Kenya since independence and devolution has created opportunities for individuals to hastily accumulate wealth.

If a county government department has been hit by corruption , the executive member in charge should be held responsible. This is because impeaching a Governor would have a severe implication on nearly every aspect and functioning of county governments. Imagine if the MPs could be executing impeachments against the President, one after another?

My point of view is that the MCAs should blow the whistle, gather the evidence, inform the necessary authorities and let the courts of law do their work. In addition, MCAs should prioritise their debates and have constructive engagements to benefit the citizenry and MUST abandon the politics of witch-hunting.

March 5, 2014 0