Nyamira rolls out KSh38.6m drive to fight livestock disease

**By Elizabeth Angira **

More than 113,800 cattle targeted in two-month Foot and Mouth Disease vaccination campaign as farmers receive grants

Nyamira County has launched an ambitious livestock vaccination campaign targeting more than 113,800 cattle in a bid to contain Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) and protect farmers from losses.

Governor Amos Nyaribo launched the two-month farm-to-farm vaccination exercise at Riokenye in Borabu Subcounty, where he also issued farmers’ organisations with grants totalling Sh32.6 million.

The county government will subsidise the vaccination cost by paying Sh110 per animal, leaving farmers to contribute only Sh50 per head of cattle.

Nyaribo urged farmers to register their animals and ensure they are vaccinated, warning that controlling the disease requires collective action from livestock keepers across the county.

“Our officers are moving from farm to farm for the next two months vaccinating our cows. I call on our farmers to have their cattle registered and vaccinated. Equally, encourage your neighbours to do the same,” he said.

The governor said the vaccination campaign is a proactive intervention aimed at protecting the livestock subsector and safeguarding food security in the county.

The programme is being implemented through the National Agricultural Value Chain Development Project (NAVCDP), which is also supporting farmers with financing and other interventions aimed at improving agricultural productivity.

A total of Sh11.3 million will be issued as matching grants to 13 ward-based Community SACCOs, while Kemera and Bisembe Farmers Cooperative Societies will receive Sh17.1 million in Enterprise Development Grants.

Another Sh4.2 million will go to nine Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) as inclusion grants.

In addition, Sh3.8 million has been set aside to support 40 Farmer-Led Demonstration Farms focusing on dairy and coffee value chains.

Nyaribo said the investments were designed to address key challenges facing farmers, including livestock diseases, limited access to affordable finance, weak aggregation and marketing systems, low value addition, climate-related risks and inadequate access to modern agricultural technologies.

He urged beneficiary SACCOs to use the funds responsibly by strengthening governance, increasing savings mobilisation and providing affordable agricultural financing to farmers.

The governor further called on the organisations to ensure women and young people get equal opportunities to benefit from the programme.

“These interventions are aimed at building a productive, profitable and climate-resilient economy,” Nyaribo said.

Nyansiongo Ward MCA Jackson Mogusu welcomed the funding, saying increased sensitisation was needed to encourage more cooperatives and farmers to participate.

“The cheques are to support agriculture. We need sensitisation to bring more cooperatives on board,” Mogusu said.

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