The Kenya Dairy Board (KDB) recently unveiled its Strategic Plan for 2023–2027, aiming to regulate the dairy industry to ensure healthy handling of produce and foster wealth creation.
In a speech delivered by Jonathan Mueke, Principal Secretary of the State Department for Livestock Development, Agriculture and Livestock Development emphasized the dairy sector’s pivotal role in Kenya’s economy, significantly contributing to food security, nutrition, and the livelihoods of millions of Kenyans.
“It is through strategic planning and innovative approaches that we can harness the full potential of this sector. This strategy outlines the roadmap for the next five years and is designed to enhance the competitiveness, sustainability, and resilience of the dairy industry,” he stated.
The Strategic Plan focuses on key priorities, including improving milk production and quality standards, promoting value addition and market access, and strengthening regulatory frameworks to ensure consumer safety and industry compliance.
The launch event also saw the commissioning of the new Kenya Dairy Board Head Office in Kabete, symbolizing a new chapter of growth and professionalism for the KDB. This state-of-the-art facility will serve as a hub for collaboration, innovation, and knowledge-sharing among stakeholders within the dairy value chain, reflecting a commitment to providing the necessary infrastructure and support systems for the industry’s growth.
KDB Chairman Genesio Mugo highlighted that the strategic plan is anchored on five key result areas: compliance, production and value addition, market access, sustainability, and building institutional capacity.
KDB Corporate Director Peter Mutua outlined the plan’s objectives, aiming to create an enabling policy and regulatory environment to support growth and enforce quality and safety requirements for dairy produce. The strategy envisions achieving a 20 percent annual growth in production and value addition, addressing national issues such as employment.
Regarding market access, the plan aims to grow exports by 200 million litres annually and increase domestic consumption of dairy products by 10 percent.
Mutua also noted the importance of sustainability, emphasizing the promotion of climate-smart agriculture to achieve a net-zero impact on the environment, along with enhancing research, innovation, and learning in the dairy sector.
The Government’s Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA) plan for 2022–2027 positions dairy as a key value chain for transformation, aiming to double annual milk production from the current 5.2 billion litres to 11 billion litres and increase annual exports of dairy produce to 1 billion litres of milk equivalent by 2027.
