CS Kagwe rallies Parliament to fast-track policies in push for food security

Speaking during a meeting in Malindi, leaders across the sector agreed to fast-track critical agricultural bills and reforms aimed at reducing imports, boosting local production, and unlocking international markets.

CS Kagwe emphasized that legislative action will be central to transforming agriculture into a productive, export-driven sector, warning that Kenya risks losing both jobs and market opportunities if value addition is not prioritized locally.

“There are legislative interventions that are crucial to increase exports and substitute imports. For us to succeed in markets like China, we must value-add here at home — not export jobs and import finished products,” said CS Kagwe.

He called for increased budgetary allocation to the sector, noting agriculture’s outsized contribution to the economy.

“With agriculture contributing over 25 percent of GDP, we must ask ourselves — how do you allocate just 3 percent to what is essentially the goose that lays the golden egg?” he posed.

Principal Secretary for Livestock Development Jonathan Mueke underscored the urgency of aligning Parliament with the Ministry’s reform agenda, noting that outdated legal frameworks continue to slow sector growth.

“Our laws must modernize and create an enabling environment. We must now put our heads together with Parliament to fast-track priority bills and agree on those that must move with speed,” said PS Mueke.

The meeting resolved to identify and prioritize legislation before Parliament to accelerate reforms across crops, livestock, data systems, and food safety, positioning agriculture as a key economic driver.

Chairperson of the National Assembly Agriculture Committee John Mutunga called for a unified national strategy to reduce Kenya’s heavy reliance on food imports.

“We need a harmonised approach as a sector. Production deficits are what trigger imports. If we are to substitute imports, we must think together; leveraging our competencies, capacities, and opportunities as Kenyans,” he said.

Dr.Mutunga pointed to climate change and prolonged droughts as key drivers of food imports, stressing that solutions must be locally driven rather than externally prescribed.

He further highlighted edible oils as a priority area for policy and legislative innovation, calling for “legislative engineering” to unlock domestic production and reduce the country’s import bill.

The meeting also amplified calls for stronger domestic market linkages, with Acting Director General of the Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA), Calistus Kundu, proposing that institutions such as schools prioritize local procurement.

“Schools should buy from local produce,” Kundu stated, a move seen as critical in guaranteeing stable markets for Kenyan farmers.

CS Kagwe has intimated that both House committees in Parliament had committed to pushing for higher budget allocations to match the sector’s economic importance.

Policy frameworks on coffee, tea, sugar, seed systems, and agricultural financing are also at advanced stages, signaling a comprehensive overhaul of the sector’s governance architecture.