Agriculture CS Peter Munya suspended all levies on imports for Maize and Animal Feed products effective 1st July, this year with the aim of lowering the cost of maize, flour and animal feed in the country 90 days before the next maize harvest.
CS Munya was speaking at the Namanga border where he met various stakeholders to address the maize shortage crisis. “We want to assure the public that we are working day and night to ensure that the cost of unga comes down,” said Munya.
The CS said the new measures will fast track the clearance of tracks at the border points where a major snarl up has been witnessed. He added that government is looking for ways of availing maize at an affordable price in the country, to avert the crisis.
Tanzania has imposed new restrictions on maize export permits. The Compliance with Sanitary Phytosanitary Standards (SPS) certificates issuance period has also been increased from 5 to 10 days. Requirements for trucks to cross the border has increased from Kshs 20,000.00 to Kshs 40,000.00. Kenya operates the border 24 hours while Tanzania operates for 8 hours causing massive delays.
