The Elgeyo Marakwet county government is set to establish a 6 million seedlings nursery by the end of this year at Chebara Agricultural Training College.
The County executive for agriculture Edwin Kibor said the seedlings will include avocado, coffee and tea as they embark on ensuring that all farmers in the 20 wards get seedlings.
Kibor said while farmers have embraced the wealth creation policy which involves cash crop farming, the county had noticed a gap in the availability of seedlings, which was hampering the success of the initiative.
“We as a department have therefore decided to put up a mega nursery at Chebara ATC so that our farmers can access seedlings,” he said.
Kibor said the county would also be partnering with other partners like the Kerio Valley Development Authority (KVDA) in the provision of mango seedlings which will be distributed to farmers in the Kerio Valley.
He also called on youth and women group to seize the opportunity and start their own nurseries, and earn some income, saying the county had this financial year budgeted money for the purchase of seedlings.
The County Executive said farmers in the highlands will grow avocado and tea, those in the escarpment will plant coffee, while those the highlands will be planting mangoes.
He said the county had decided to start the initiative to fight high poverty levels in the county, which currently stands at 50 percent, adding that agriculture was the only way to ensure that residents are empowered economically.
“With the planting of the cash crops in the different ecological zones in the county, farmers will now be able to meet their financial needs. We don’t have to rely on bursaries to pay school fees for our children, we will also comfortably pay for SHA,” he said.
Kibor added that with agro forestry, the county will not only improve the economy, but it will also help in conservation efforts, thus preventing loss of lives and properties as a result of landslides, which normally affect the area when it rains.
By Alice Wanjiru
