This is because the trials had
initially taken more than five years after a task force to oversee the exercise
was formed in 2017 and the announcement will now re-energize cotton farming
while giving farmers a lifeline to increase their yields.
President Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration has continued to prioritize cotton- textile value chain as one
of the critical sectors that contribute to manufacturing growth from the current 9
percent to 15 percent in the year 2022.
Cotton farmers spread across arid
areas in the country that might have lost hope in planting the crop will definitely
be awaken by the sweet news which will now be a long-lasting solution to the
challenges they faced in the early 1990s.
The taskforce involved members
drawn from Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Cooperatives, KARLO, agriculture and
food authority/ Fibre Crops Directorate, Rivatex, and National Biosafety
Authority.
Among the activities the
taskforce undertook included; environmental release under confined field trials
and national performance trials (NPT) variety development and finally
commercialization.
The areas where National
Performance Trials (NPT) was conducted comprised of Bura, Mwea, Perkerra,
Kwale, Matuga, Kibos, Alupe, and Kerio Valley.
Rivatex East Africa played a crucial role in the lead up to the commercialization exercise by commissioning
sensitization of cotton farming in major areas in the country.
The vertically integrated textile industry is one of the biggest players in President Kenyatta’s Big four agenda
through the promotion of production of woven garments for local and global markets
Farmers in Siaya, Homa Bay,
Busia, Baringo, Elgeyo Marakwet, West Pokot, Kilifi, Makueni, Kisumu,
Kirinyaga, Meru, Isiolo, Kitui, Bungoma, Lamu, Kericho, Tharaka Nithi, Muranga,
Embu, Machakos, Kwale, and Tana River now have a reason to go engage in farming
following the commercialization of BT Cotton.
The highlighted areas had
initially abandoned farming due to poor prices and above all because of
persistent pests are known as bollworm which attacked cotton plants as it neared
harvest, leading to huge losses.
Those who bought pesticides also
faced a huge cost of production and never realized good fortunes.
They have been forced to spray up to
14 times in a bid to contain bollworms and other pests that are prone to
conventional cotton varieties such as Hart89M and KSA811M.
According to Mr. Charles Lagat,
Rivatex Cotton programs manage the current production of conventional cotton
stands at 572 kilograms per hectare and the availability of hybrid seeds is set
to raise the bar up to 2500 kilograms per hectare because of its high
resistance to pests.
Through BT, farmers are in a
position to harvest more and because of functional textile mills; they will be
able to get a ready market.
Similarly, there shall be a
reduction of soil degradation due to minimal usage of insecticides. This has
been a challenge due to the persistence of the bollworm pests.
BT seeds will help improve the
quality of lint eventually improving the living standards of farmers due to
increased economic activities.
It is also in the interest of
government to see an increase in Gross Domestic Production (GDP) and this can
be realized through the growth of value chain such as ginneries, mills and
garments due to locally available raw materials. This will also reduce the cost
of importation.
I envision the creation of subsidiary
industries such as cotton seed cake for dairy farmers and cooking oil derived
from cotton. This will also create employment opportunities through the creation of
such industries.
Farmers are now looking forward
into the New Year with hopes lifted up and ready to go back to their farmers to
plant BT cotton.
The state should ensure that it
walks with farmers in the adoption of BT hybrid seeds besides provision of
extension services and putting its energies on cotton farming which used to be
a marketable venture in the 1990s.
The government should also aid in bulking
of the seeds to make them available to farmers before the onset of planting
season in March 2020.
Ends.
