Kenyan ministers have agreed to hand over one month’s salary as an «individual and collective contribution» to the authorities’ response to the severe drought affecting the African country, the Kenyan Presidency has announced.
«In solidarity with all Kenyans affected by the drought, it has been agreed that all members (of the Council of Ministers) will hand over one month’s salary as an individual and collective contribution to state interventions supporting Kenyans affected by the drought,» it said.
Thus, he said in a statement published through his official account on the social network Twitter that «as part of the long-term measures to address cyclical droughts and the cost of living, the Government has weighed the food supply situation in the country» and has recognized that the cost of some commodities is «unacceptably high».
«The Government has noted that the maize harvest is underway in the country, with an estimated annual estimate of 30 million bags of maize. To honor the nation’s sacred duty to farmers, the Cabinet has decided that the production will have priority access in the market,» he has unveiled.
The Kenyan government acknowledged that annual consumption is higher than this figure, so the shortfall «will be closed by importing ten million bags of maize», before emphasizing a fertilizer subsidy to boost the production of Kenyan farmers.
In this sense, he defended that this measure «will increase food production and help reduce the overall costs of production and, with it, the rising cost of living».
The United Nations and its humanitarian partners in Kenya last week demanded $472.6 million (about 457 million euros) to deliver aid in 2023 to 4.3 million people affected by drought in the country and warned that the crisis could worsen in the coming months.
