How Kenya can meet local demand for rice

Rice is the third most consumed staple in the country, yet we are not self-sufficient to meet our demand. With a growing population and increase in per capita rice consumption, the government and other policymakers have been left with only a few options to meet future demand for rice; through increased imports and increased productivity.

Our national rice consumption is estimated at 500,000 metric tonnes a year. Despite this being a clear indication of Kenyans uptake of rice as a principal food, our annual production of 100,000 metric tonnes pales in comparison.