A Latia Resource Centre Foundation director has told the national and county governments to invest more in irrigation than rain-fed agriculture.

Kimutai Bett, who spoke in Isinya, Kajiado county while distributing start-up kits to more than 300 agripreneurs, said irrigation is the only way to go.

“The effect of climate change has done a blow to rain distribution worldwide, and it is time for the counties and the national government to invest heavily in finding water,” said Bett.

Bett, who spoke on Thursday evening, said rainfed agriculture is no longer sustainable for the Kenyan economy as it is no longer reliable.

“Sinking boreholes and dams for the farming community in Kenya is expensive, and this is the reason we are appealing to both national and county governments to invest heavily in the construction of dams and boreholes,” said the director.

The director said agriculture is the backbone of the Kenyan economy and that it is the responsibility of both arms of government to fund the sector and link the farmers to the market.

“This will enable the farmers to bank their profits and provide the food on the table. With the current situation in the country, very few people can afford to make any savings because all that they have is spent on feeding families," he said.

He said the Latia Agripreneurship Institute in Isinya should be replicated countrywide to equip young people with modern skills in modern farming.

Latia provides an agribusiness incubation service that unlocks the potential of the small and medium-sized farms and agribusinesses in Kenya.

The service is a one-stop shop where agripreneurs can find all they need to make their enterprises thrive, according to its managing director, Charles Macharia.

Macharia thanked a German organisation, Welt Hunger Hilfe (WHH), for sourcing funds for the sponsor of the 300 graduands.

The graduands, trained in agripreneurship at the institute, from across the country were provided with traditional chicks, feeds and vegetable seedlings.

The representative of the WHH in Kenya, Farida Juma said the funding of the program at Latia was made possible by a German organisation called BMZ.

“The BMZ Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development supports developing countries in reducing greenhouse gases and adapting to the consequences of climate change, thus contributing to advancing the implementation of international climate and development goals,” said Juma.  

Juma said her organisation will continue working with MBZ in supporting Latia in the country.

Present during the event was one official from WHH, Germany, Sinan Beils, and officials from the county and national governments.