Revival of the Galana -Kulalu food security project is among the key areas Kilifi Governor Gideon Mung’aro is targeting I’m his administration.
The project he said would help in addressing the issue of hunger and irrigation in his county.
The Governor said his administration will hold talks with the National government to see the revival of the project and set up a milling plant in his county so as to promote food security.
He was addressing Members of the County Assembly (MCAS) during the first sitting of the third Assembly in Malindi where he also outlined key plans for transforming the county in education, health, Agriculture, Tourism, Roads infrastructure, and revenue collection among others.
In his address, he said the county will seek budgetary allocation approval from the county assembly to establish 14 smallholder irrigation schemes along the Galana river so as to boost food production and address food insecurity.
“I commit to engaging the National government to discuss mechanisms for reviving Galana –Kulalu irrigation project, which I believe could go a long way in reducing perennial hunger in the County if properly managed. My discussions will include the possibility of setting up a maize milling company in the county to benefit this irrigation project,” he said.
He said plans are underway to identify partners and investors to support value addition through the processing of mango, cashew nuts, coconut, cassava, and other horticultural produce adding that his administration is currently mapping stakeholders in the sector.
Infrastructure
The Governor said his administration also intends to tarmac 100 kilometres of county roads to bitumen standards annually.
“I will reach out to the national government for collaboration to improve on our roads infrastructure to provide the necessary connectivity that will attract investment into Kilifi County,” he said.
The Governor said to promote Kilifi as a preferred world-class destination for conference, cultural and sports tourism his administration was in talks with partners to build a state-of-the-art sports stadium.
Further, he said they have partnered with Pwani university to build a modern teaching and referral hospital of its kind in the region to open up opportunities for Kilifi to become a medical tourist city. Mung’aro said they will collaborate with the national government to modernize the Malindi International Airport to improve its capacity for direct international flights and handling of large aircraft to boost the number of visitors to the destination.
“ My administration will soon be engaging the tourism stakeholders to review and diversify the destinations’ products with a view to making Kilifi more competitive,” he said.
The Governor said he would also work closely with other Coast governors to establish a marine transport system to connect the Five coastal counties on the coastal line which will act as a tourism attraction and boost the sector. He said plans are also underway to automate the revenue collection system and establish a single business that combines multiple fees and charges.
“ We will re-train enforcement officers who support revenue collection to become more people-friendly. My administration is reviewing the conditions of doing business to make them more investor friendly to attract Foreign Direct Investment,” he said.
He said his administration shall support education for deserving underprivileged children through the county education fund a process which he said would be done transparently and which willbe coordinated from the village level. He said the county shall also introduce school feeding programs in Early Childhood Development (ECD) centers.
“We will re-align vocational training to conform with the needs of the industry and take advantage of emerging opportunities in the blue economy sector. This will guarantee our young men and women better chances of securing employment or starting their own businesses,” he said.
The Governor said he would collaborate with the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF), in the spirit of Universal Health Care, to provide medical cover to the elderly above the age of 65years.
” I will soon be asking the County Assembly, through a supplementary budget, to allocate additional funding to the health department to facilitate the purchase of adequate drugs for all our health facilities,” he said.
He also directed ambulance services to be offered free of charge to relieve patients and their families of the burden of paying for emergency services.
Mung’aro said his administration plans to end the perennial water shortages in the county and that he would be requesting the County Assembly to allocate a substantial budget to the water sector over the next three budget cycles to address the problem.
He said the funds will be used to develop multiple water infrastructures, including new dams, water pans, pipelines, and rehabilitation of aged and dilapidated water infrastructure.
He said The County government will partner with other stakeholders to promote rainwater harvesting adding that they will review the water drilling services with a view to expanding the service to enhance water provision in the county.
On the land issue, the Governor said the county will be carrying out a complete land audit to give his government a chance to develop a comprehensive plan to gradually address the land question.
”I will shortly be seeking the support of the House to allocate funds to fast-track ongoing adjudication and processing of titles for landowners. My office will be very keen to ensure that the adjudication process is transparent, fair, and free of any form of injustice,” he said.
Nominated Member of County Assembly Justin Rafiki and his Shella Ward Counterpart Twahir Abdulkarim hailed the governor’s speech saying it touched on the pertinent issues affecting the county.