Ruto’s Bold Plan to End Kenya’s Food Import Reliance

President William Ruto is spearheading a national strategy to drastically cut Kenya’s Sh400 billion food import bill by boosting local agricultural production.

The political calculus of President William Ruto’s administration is clear: shift the economic focus from subsidizing consumption to subsidizing production. At the heart of this strategy is a comprehensive, data-driven drive to drastically reduce Kenya’s reliance on food imports, a dependency that currently costs the nation an estimated Sh400 billion annually. This initiative is not merely an agricultural reform; it is a core pillar of the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA), designed to achieve national self-sufficiency and stabilize the cost of living for millions of Kenyans. The commitment signals a decisive pivot towards empowering the local farmer as the primary engine of economic growth and food security.

Digitizing Agriculture and Cutting Input Costs A cornerstone of the government’s ambitious agricultural policy is the digital revolution in farming. The Head of State recently highlighted that 7.1 million farmers are now digitally registered, a move intended to enable data-driven policy and targeted support. This digital infrastructure underpins the massive fertilizer subsidy program, which has been a key intervention to lower the cost of production. The price of a 50kg bag of fertilizer has successfully been reduced from a high of Sh7,500 to Sh2,500, a measure projected to save farmers a staggering Sh105 billion. By making crucial inputs affordable, the administration aims to mitigate the historical constraints of erratic rainfall and costly inputs, thereby transforming subsistence farming into a high-value, commercially viable sector.

The Immediate Impact on National Production The reforms are already yielding measurable results, providing early validation for the government’s focus on local production. The country has witnessed a significant reduction in maize imports, with figures dropping by 70 percent, from 9.9 million bags in 2022 to 3 million bags in 2024. This sharp decline directly addresses the drain on foreign exchange reserves and the vulnerability associated with global supply chains. Furthermore, maize production is projected to increase from 67 million bags in 2024 to an expected 70 million bags this year. This upward trajectory in the production of Kenya’s staple food is a powerful indicator that the fertilizer subsidy and targeted interventions are translating into tangible food security gains and easing the burden on consumers.

Shifting from Raw Exports to Value Addition Beyond staple foods, the administration is aggressively pursuing value addition to maximize farmer incomes and create jobs. President Ruto has strongly urged an end to the long-standing practice of exporting raw agricultural products, such as tea, coffee, and hides, only to re-import them as finished goods at a higher cost. To facilitate this, the government has secured a Sh3.7 billion concessionary loan for the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) to modernize factories, reduce costs, and diversify into higher-value orthodox tea. Coupled with the establishment of County Aggregation and Industrial Parks (CAIPs) and Special Economic Zones, this strategic move aims to transform Kenya into a regional agro-processing powerhouse. This focus on industrialization within the agricultural sector is a critical component of the broader economic transformation agenda.

This sustained drive to boost local production and cut food imports is a high-stakes political promise. Success will be measured not just in balance sheet figures but in the realized prosperity of the 7.1 million digitally registered farmers and the sustained lowering of the cost of living. The national vision is clear: a future of true self-sufficiency. To sustain this momentum, all stakeholders—farmers, investors, and county governments—must align their efforts with this transformative agricultural policy. Support local initiatives, invest in value addition, and secure Kenya’s future.

---

Original Source: Standard Digital

• Tags:
• President