The government’s decision to allow the importation of 500,000 metric tons of rice by Business Bay Square Mall in Eastleigh has sparked controversy, with Busia Senator Okiya Omtatah raising questions over its impact on local farmers and the transparency of the process.
On the Senate floor, Senator Omtatah requested a statement from the Senate Standing Committee on Tourism, Trade and Industrialization, calling for an investigation into how the importation deal was approved and whether proper regulations were followed.
“This development has raised serious concerns about its impact on local rice farmers, the transparency of the quota allocation process, and the apparent bypassing of key regulatory institutions such as the Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA),” said Senator Omtatah.
He questioned the criteria used to allocate such a large import quota to a single mall and whether the process was competitive or adhered to existing laws, including the Crops Act and Food Crops Regulations of 2019.
The Senator further asked the Committee to probe the involvement of the Ministry of Trade and why the Ministry of Agriculture and AFA — both tasked with overseeing food crop imports — were allegedly left out of the approval process.
Omtatah pointed to recent reports showing that over 5,000 metric tons of locally grown rice are lying uncollected at the Mwea Rice Growers Multipurpose Cooperative Society, questioning whether AFA had conducted a proper assessment of domestic rice supply and demand before clearing the imports.
He also urged the Committee to examine what safeguards have been put in place to protect local farmers from being pushed out of the market by cheap imports.
He called for clarification on whether AFA has budgeted for the purchase of surplus rice from local cooperatives as part of its efforts to stabilize the sector.
Omtatah emphasized the importance of aligning such decisions with Kenya’s agricultural priorities under the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA), which aims to boost local production and improve farmers’ incomes.
The Senator wants the Committee to evaluate how large-scale rice imports could affect local market prices and propose strategies to ensure that both consumer needs and farmer livelihoods are protected.
The matter now lies with the Senate Committee, which is expected to respond with its findings and recommendations.
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