The government has announced a further reduction in the price of subsidised fertiliser and maize seed as it moves to cushion farmers affected by drought and encourage them to return to production.
Under the new measures, farmers will buy a 50-kilogramme bag of fertiliser at KSh2,000, down from the current KSh2,500.
The government will also cover half the cost of certified maize seed, cutting the price from KSh300 to KSh150 per kilogramme.
This means farmers will pay KSh300 for a 2kg pack of maize seed instead of KSh600. A 10kg pack will cost KSh1,500, down from KSh3,000, while a 25kg pack will retail at KSh3,750 instead of KSh7,500.
The seed subsidy is expected to cover about 40 million kilogrammes of certified maize seed, with the government putting the value of its support at approximately KSh6 billion.
Farmers will access the subsidised inputs through government-designated distribution channels.
Fertiliser price drops further
The latest reduction comes after the government introduced the National Fertilizer Subsidy Programme in 2022.
At the time, a 50kg bag of fertiliser was selling for about KSh7,500. The subsidy brought the price down to KSh2,500, and it will now fall further to KSh2,000.
This represents a reduction of more than 73 per cent from the 2022 price.
Since the programme began, the government says between 33 million and 55 million 50kg bags of subsidised fertiliser have been distributed to farmers.
About 1.98 million farmers have benefited, with government support estimated at KSh78.79 billion.
The government has argued that subsidies have also contributed to the increase in maize production.
The increase in maize production is from 34.3 million 90kg bags in 2022 to 73 million bags in 2025, while the importation of maize decreased by more than 66.5 percent within the same period.
The government would now want to ensure that the gains are protected from the impact of droughts.
Government shifts focus to production
The new measures are part of President William Ruto’s administration’s policy of moving away from subsidising consumption towards supporting production.
The government says lowering the cost of farm inputs will allow farmers to produce more while also helping strengthen the country’s food security.
The latest support is particularly aimed at farmers who have lost crops because of drought and may struggle to afford the inputs needed for the next planting season.
According to the government, the reason behind this is to ensure that the farmers who have already lost their crop productions do not also lose the chance to plant again due to the high cost of seeds and fertilizer.
Apart from the subsidies, the government announced that it would continue to invest in irrigation, water harvesting, among other climate smart agriculture practices in order to enable the farmers to cope with the erratic weather.
The measures are anticipated to offer some level of comfort to the farmers as they prepare for the next planting season.
