Agriculture CS Peter Munya dismisses reports of suspension of maize flour subsidy

Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya has dismissed reports of the suspension of the maize flour subsidy which has seen 2kg packets of maize flour retailing at Sh100 since July 20, 2022.

CS Munya said the subsidy was still in effect and that reports that it had been suspended were misleading.

In a brief statement online, the CS clarified: "Kenyans, kindly note that the Maize Flour Subsidy Program is still on."

Despite the subsidy, the commodity has been scarce in the market with the available stock retailing at over Sh100, something the CS has attributed to hoarding by millers.

“We have lowered the price of unga but there are some millers who are hoarding the product. We have started carrying out investigations to find out where they are hiding them. We pay them money to lower the prices and they start hiding it,” CS Munya said in July.

President Kenyatta on July 20 directed that his administration would subsidize the cost of maize flour to make millers sell the product at Sh100 per 2kg.

Agriculture CS Peter Munya Pulse Live Kenya

The president faulted politicians who had turned the maize crisis into political fodder, blaming the government for the high cost of the commodity.

"Every election in our country has attracted an unga crisis and at times it seems to be engineered. There is an obvious trend between the manner with which the price of Unga goes up and the tempo is taken up during elections," he said.

The directive by the president saw prices of Unga drop and subsided packets were on supermarkets shelves but no sooner than the commodity had reached some parts of the country it disappeared.

Maize flour prices skyrocket Maize flour prices skyrocket Pulse Live Kenya

READ: CS Munya announces measures to bring down cost of maize flour

President Kenyatta appealed to millers to be cognizant of the rights of Kenyans and urged them to consider their consumers' welfare and not be driven solely by profitability.

“You can make profits and exercise responsible business practices all at the same time, more so because if unethical practices result in instability before or after the elections because the biggest loser is not the ordinary citizen. It is the corporate citizens whose investments will be the first to suffer,” President Kenyatta cautioned.