President William Ruto on Monday April 8, 2024 promised to take legal action against fraudsters selling fake fertiliser to farmers in the country.

The president made the remarks during his tour at the Eldoret National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) depot, where he witnessed the distribution of subsidized fertiliser to farmers. 

“We will deal with fraudsters trying to undermine our food production program by selling fake fertilizer,” he stated. 

At the same time, the Head of State instructed the management of NCPB branches in the country to speed up the distribution of subsidized fertiliser.

President Ruto noted that he will not allow fraudsters to undermine food production programs in Kenya, as he emphasized the importance of timely access to fertiliser by farmers.

Additionally, he explained that the Kenya Kwanza government is committed to safeguarding the agricultural sector and protecting farmers from fraudulent practices.

Ruto made the remarks on a day Parliament summoned Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mithika Linturi, Principal Secretary Paul Ronoh and other officials from NCPB and KEPHIS over the fake fertiliser scandal.

Meanwhile, Agriculture PS Ronoh announced two days ago that farmers who were supplied with the fake fertiliser would be compensated.

Ronoh explained that NCPB was collecting data from affected farmers for purposes of compensating them.

“We are engaging the farmers who were affected and we have directed NCPB to move ahead and facilitate them by capturing the data and ascertaining the information so they are assisted,” said Ronoh.

The PS further disclosed that after analyzing the fake fertiliser, they discovered that it was missing some important nutrients.