By:Faith Mukundi
Deputy President Kithure Kindiki has revealed that 8.9 million cattle have been vaccinated under a nationwide livestock health programme targeting the country’s entire cattle and small-stock population.
Kindiki said the ongoing programme is targeting 22 million cattle and 50 million small stock as the government seeks to strengthen livestock production and improve the incomes of farmers.
He made the remarks on Wednesday, October 7, 2026, while presiding over the official opening of the Agriculture and Food Security Transformation Summit at Jamhuri Park ASK Showground in Nairobi.
The Deputy President said livestock health was a key component of the government’s broader strategy to transform agriculture and improve productivity across the sector.
According to Kindiki, the vaccination programme is part of interventions implemented over the past four years after the government placed agriculture at the centre of Kenya’s economic transformation agenda.
He said the government had also expanded its farmer registration system, with the database growing from about 300,000 farmers to 7.2 million crop farmers and three million livestock keepers.
Kindiki further highlighted measures aimed at reducing the cost of livestock production, including a reduction in the price of sexed semen used for artificial insemination of dairy cows.
He said the price had fallen from KSh8,000 to KSh1,400 per dose, making the technology more accessible to dairy farmers.
The Deputy President said the interventions had contributed to growth in agricultural production and farmer incomes across several value chains.
Kenya’s dairy sector has recorded an increase in milk production from 4.6 billion litres to 5.2 billion litres, while the value of dairy products has risen from KSh4.9 billion to KSh8.9 billion.
Kindiki also said Kenya is now the leading exporter of processed milk in Africa, while the value of meat exports had increased from KSh8.9 billion to KSh12.9 billion.
He attributed the progress to government interventions targeting production, animal health, value addition and access to agricultural services.
The government has also reduced the cost of key farm inputs, with Kindiki saying the price of a bag of fertiliser had fallen from KSh7,000 to KSh2,000.
The price of certified maize seed had also dropped by 50 per cent from KSh300 to KSh150 per kilogramme.
Kindiki said the government was also investing in agricultural value addition, noting that 17 County Aggregation and Industrial Parks had been completed and were being equipped to support agro-processing.
He said extension services had been revamped while research and innovation had been stepped up to develop better animal breeds, new crop varieties and improved farming technologies.
Kindiki said the government would continue supporting farmers as part of efforts to improve food security and make Kenya more self-sufficient.
“At the Centre of this impressive transformation is the farmer: hard working, resilient and patriotic enough to know that their work is not just about livelihood, it is also about making our country self sufficient in matters food,” Kindiki said.