Ministries of agriculture, fisheries and livestock to merge ahead of next year's election
By Ben Kinyanjui
Ms Margeret Kithii was sure that she had passed the interview. She had prepared for it and she had tackled all the questions and issues raised professionally and calmly. She could read the mood and the game was over.
Livestock contributes significantly to economic development
But she was wrong. All that confidence was shattered when one panelist out of the blues asked her who the current minister for higher Education is. She was shocked and her mind went blank.
Like most people would do, she fumbled with all names she knows among the bloated 42 member- cabinet. She could not forgive herself that she had forgotten a name she had crammed that same morning for the sake of the interview.
However, Kithii can be forgiven And she is not alone. The cabinet is bloated and ministers are moved at will. Even renowned economists like Prof Anyang Nyong recently went ‘missing’ when doctors came knocking asking for more money.
Observers say the economist should be leading experts to craft the next economic policy to spur economic growth in the next decade.
Likewise, Prof Sam Ongeri, a renowned medic and professor of medicine occasionally finds himself in an awkward position trying to explain in not very clear terms how billions of shillings meant to fund free primary school funds went missing under his watch.
How about a career diplomat in Dr Sally Kosgey talking about food security when the granaries are empty and farmers are unwilling to sell their maize to the government because it hardly supports them to produce but is quick to set selling price on the little they struggle to produce.
Probably the new constitution will fix this as it has already set 22 as the maximum number of ministers the next governments can have. So many of the current ministries will either be merged or scrapped altogether.
Better still; the appointees will be picked from outside parliament, giving a chance to some Kenyans distinguished in their specialty a chance to serve the country without undue pressure from any constituency.
And the ministry of an Agricultural is already ahead of the pack with a proposal to consolidate three ministries into one and review the 131 pieces of legislations that govern the sector.
Under the proposed arrangement, a new outfit, Agricultural and Livestock Food Authority, will be created to coordinate all the ten agro-sector ministries’ activities.
Already the parliamentary committee on agriculture has prepared relevant legislations that will bring the ministries of agriculture, livestock and fishers under one umbrella for effective service delivery.
Dr Sally Kosgei said the sector was currently regulated by 131 pieces of legislations, most of which are outdated, no longer responsive to the needs of the dynamic sector and major impediment to economic growth.
She said the laws were weak and incapable of fostering competition in the sector while the numerous parastatals play multiple, overlapping and at times contradictory functions.
The sector is also characterized by a restrictive regulatory environment that hinders and often discourages private sector investment.
The new development comes a time when the country is facing high food prices mainly caused by low productivity due to overreliance on rain fed agriculture, high costs of farm inputs and vagaries of weather.
Sugar consumers are currently paying some of the highest prices in the world due to distortions in the market. The cost of maize is also far beyond the prevailing world prices.
