Munya wants NCPB, food reserves agency under one roof

The Agriculture ministry will reverse reforms that sought to separate emergency food services from commercial activities at the national granary.

Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya has said he will present a memorandum to the Cabinet seeking approval to merge National Cereals and Produce Board and Strategic Food Reserve (SFR).

Mr Munya said the move is one of the major reforms that he is planning to roll out in the ministry in the coming months to ensure efficiency.

The CS said it does not make sense to have SFR as a separate entity when its functions can be executed by NCPB.

“There is no need of having NCPB and SFR as different entities. We want to merge the two bodies and I shall be presenting a Cabinet memorandum to this effect,” said Mr Munya.

Mr Munya said the move will also help in bringing to an end conflict of interest as witnessed last year when the agency was at loggerheads with NCPB and the government over importation of maize.

“For long the two institutions have not lived up to their mandate and, in most cases, have been quarreling over the food produced by farmers. The agencies have created an ownership problem characterised by debt claims and delay to buy maize from the farmers,” said the CS.

He said the Cabinet memo detailing the reform agenda in the food sector will be ready in the next two weeks and be presented to the cabinet for discussion and approval. “So going forward the ministry in conjunction with agriculture value chain players will fast track major reforms in order to enhance and food security,” he said.