National Assembly Committee On Agriculture And Livestock Gets Submissions On Extension Bill
Nominated MP Sabina Chege with her colleague during yesterday's session
By MKT Correspondent
The National Assembly Committee on Agriculture and Livestock, chaired by Tigania West MP John Mutunga has held a stakeholder meeting with the Kenya National Farmers’ Federation (KENAFF) on the Agricultural and Livestock Extension Services Bill, 2022.
Presenting before the committee, Ms Mary Kageni, the research policy and lobby advocacy officer at KENAFF, stated that the Bill is a timely regulation aimed at organizing and boosting the agriculture sector, arguing that it will enhance farmer support, promote sustainability and make agriculture a lucrative industry through effective extension services and stakeholder involvement.
However, according to Ms. Kageni, the definition of the extension services needs to be included in the interpretation of terms in the Bill. She called for a clear definition of the services questioning whether the services are only limited to advisory on farm inputs or factors of production.
In her presentation, she also recommended for extension services to be involved in the monitoring of the impacts of the new agricultural commodities and the new production methods stated in Clause 8c, which mandates KALRO and the Biosafety Authority on the development of new uses and new products for agricultural commodities and alternative production method to develop new crops.
“In Clause 8 of the Bill, there is a need to incorporate monitoring impacts of farm inputs use as one of the responsibilities of the extension services, and ensuring farmers rights are well taken care of to ensure the quality of products farmers use is safe for both their safety and the environment. Extension officers could also be mandated to enforce the Agricultural regulations and any person contravening the guidelines held accountable for their actions,” she told the Committee.
The Bill sponsored by Sen. Tabitha Mutinda (nominated) seeks to provide for agricultural and livestock extension and establish the Agricultural and Extension services.
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