The stage is set for a looming food crisis as maize stocks dwindle and Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mwangi Kiunjuri insists that he will not approve a fresh round of imports even as industry experts estimate that the amounts can only last for another three weeks.
SH11BN DEBT
The next harvest, mainly from the second maize belt of the South Rift Valley, can only come after August, and is expected to be repressed following the prolonged drought early in the year.
There is also confusion over the exact quantity of maize held by the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) and millers.
Sources within the Ministry of Agriculture on Sunday told Nation that NCPB has about 1.5 million bags of maize while millers are holding less than 700,000.
This is hardly enough for three weeks.
The Strategic Food Reserve (SFR) last week released 1.7 million bags of maize — one million to big millers and 700,000 to the small millers — at Sh2,300 per 90kg bag but the processors have termed the consignment a drop in the ocean.
The shelf price of maize flour did not change.
Small millers on Friday last week told Nation that they had made excess payments to the NCPB, but they now believe it may not have enough grain to supply them.
This has been made worse by a stand-off between the Ministry of Agriculture and NCPB over a Sh11 billion debt.
The NCPB management has admitted that the delayed payment has interrupted operations at the State agency that is faced with financial challenges including delayed payment of salaries to its employees for the last two months.
PROCESS
“There has been delays in release of maize to millers as a result of delayed payments but we expect the two departments to arrive at a quick solution into the matter,” said Mr Titus Maiyo, NCPB communications manager.
The Ministry of Agriculture and the SFR owe NCPB Sh8 billion and Sh3 billion, respectively, for the purchase of fertiliser, chemicals and gunny bags for storing maize.
SFR chairman Noah Wekesa, however, denies the board owes NCPB any money and is instead demanding payments for sale of maize by the State agency.
Scores of millers who had gone to collect maize from NCPB depots, and had been cleared by SFR after making payments, were turned away.
“We paid for the grain last week and the Ministry of Agriculture should hasten the process of releasing the consignment to cushion us from incurring extra costs,” said one of the millers who requested not to be named.
He said if Mr Kiunjuri couldn’t handle the maize crisis as he had admitted, then he should resign to pave the way for someone else to run the sector.
According to Cereal Millers Association, four large scale milling firms — Mombasa Millers, Pembe, Kitui Millers and Dola — are the only ones with some maize stocks but are not enough to sustain operations for the next three weeks unless the supplies improves.
The NCPB bought 417,000 bags of maize atSh2,300 this season against a target of 2 million bags.
FAMINE
“What we have in our store is 3.5 million bags of last season maize and the 417,000 bags that we purchased this season,” Mr Maiyo had said earlier.
The board released 5,222 bags of maize to famine stricken families in Turkana, Baringo and Isiolo counties in April and has sold a further 2 million bags to millers.
Additional 300,000 bags of maize that had been damaged after it overstayed in driers, was released by the board to animal feed manufacturers, leaving the remaining stock at less than 1.5 million bags.
A source at NCPB further explained that what the government has retained is grade one maize for strategic reserve and supplies to learning institutions and government agencies, leaving very little for millers.
But Mr Kiunjuri has maintained that importation of duty free maize will require authorisation by the full Cabinet to lock out cartels who have been profiteering from the scheme at the expense of starving Kenyans.
“The stocks that we have in the country can last up to the end of June. I know time is running out, but I will leave that decision to the Cabinet,” said the.
CONFUSION
It takes one and half months for imported grains to land in the country but with red tape, the process might take even longer.
Agriculture Chief Administrative Secretary Andrew Tuimur said a comprehensive stocktaking process will be done before importation of the grains. This process has not started.
Several millers in Western and Central Kenya regions have suspended operations due to maize shortage as confusion reigns.
At least 10 small and large scale plants have sent a section of staff on leave after it closing temporarily due to acute maize shortage.
“We have been milling below capacity for the last two weeks forcing us to suspend operations until we obtain sufficient stocks,” said a miller who requested not to be named.