Kenya is to hasten the transformation of millet value chains as part of ongoing efforts to boost food and nutrition security in the drylands.

Mithika Linturi, cabinet secretary for the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, said the government prioritised reviving millet farming, given the crop’s immense nutritional and health benefits.

Mr Linturi made the remarks in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, during the official announcement of the India-Africa International Millet Conference slated for August in Nairobi.

He said investments in research, farmer education, and value addition would boost millet production in the drylands reeling from acute food insecurity.

More than 500 delegates from Africa and Asia, including policymakers, researchers, industry executives and farmer lobby groups, will grace the two-day forum to explore new ways of revitalising millet farming.

The United Nations has declared 2023 as the ‘International Year of Millets’.

Mr Linturi said Kenya aims to harness recommendations from the forum to position itself as a major producer of millet for domestic consumption and export to neighbouring countries.

He observed that extreme weather events linked to climate change, poor agronomic practices, diseases, pests, and declining soil fertility were to blame for poor millet yields.

Mr Linturi added that the country would gain from high millet yields by providing farmers with improved seed varieties, manure, training and market linkages.

Indian high commissioner to Kenya Namgya Khampa said South-South collaboration is key to promoting research and development of high-yielding millet varieties.

Mr Khampa said as part of the International Year of Millets, India would forge a stronger partnership with Kenya and other African countries to revamp millet cultivation through research, harnessing technologies and innovations.

Jacqueline Hughes, director-general at the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), said that improved agronomic practices and inclusive value chains would ensure that African smallholder farmers derive multiple benefits from millet.

According to Ms Hughes, the ICRISAT has the world’s largest public sector repository of millet genetic resources to improve productivity and technologies to ensure the crop is resilient and profitable. 

(Xinhua/NAN)