Kenya

Linturi throws Kebs under the bus over fake fertiliser fiasco

The government will only compensate farmers who received 3,000 bags of fertiliser flagged as substandard, even as the Ministry of Agriculture maintains there is no fake input in the subsidy programme.

Agriculture and Livestock Development Cabinet Secretary Mithika Linturi yesterday said the Kenya Bureau of Standards should be blamed for the substandard fertiliser fiasco.

Appearing before the Senate Agriculture Committee, Mr Linturi said of the 2.3 million bags of fertiliser distributed as of April 4 under the subsidy programme, “only 3,000 were flagged as substandard”.

(Source: Nation)

Tanzania

Councils urged to allocate land for BBT project

District councils in the country wishing to be included in the implementation of Building Better Tomorrow (BBT) have been called upon to earmark land for the initiative.

Deputy Minister for Agriculture David Silinde made the call when responding to the basic question asked by Special Seats legislator (CCM) Subira Mgalu in Parliament.

In her question, Ms Mgalu wanted to know if the government had any plan to implement the BBT project in Rufiji Basin. In his response to the question, the deputy minister said that until March this year, the government had earmarked a total of 340,245.3 acres for the programme across the country, including testing soil health.

(Source: Daily News)

Uganda

City traders reject minister’s pleas, vow to resume strike

Traders are to resume their strike next week after rejecting a plea by the Minister of Kampala City and Metropolitan Affairs and the Commander of Military Police to halt the protest to allow engagements with the government.

Leaders of four different traders’ associations met Minister Minsa Kabanda, the Commander of Military Police, Brig Gen William Bainomugisha, and Mr Michael Katungi, a member of Patriotic League Uganda, at Fairway Hotel in Kampala on Wednesday.

The traders are protesting a range of issues, including the implementation of the Electronic Fiscal Receipting and Invoicing Solution (EFRIS) system during tax assessment by the Uganda Revenue Authority.

(Source: Monitor)

Somalia

President Mohamud meets Kenya’s President in Nairobi

Somalia’s President, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, was scheduled to hold a crucial meeting with his Kenyan counterpart, William Ruto, in Nairobi on Thursday.

Officials confirmed this high-level meeting, which aimed to address the escalating tensions between Somalia and Ethiopia and other pressing regional issues.

The diplomatic efforts by President Ruto have been underway quietly, to de-escalate the brewing dispute between Mogadishu and Addis Ababa over Ethiopia’s pursuit of access to the sea through the breakaway Somaliland administration.

(Source: Radio Dalsan)