Bilateral meeting with the Cabinet Secretary of the National Treasury of Kenya – Prof. Njuguna Ndung'u

Rome – FAO Director-General QU Dongyu met today with Prof Njuguna Ndung'u, Cabinet Secretary of the National Treasury of the Republic of Kenya. The two had a fruitful discussion on the important role agriculture plays in addressing the impacts of the climate crisis and driving economic growth.

The Cabinet Secretary informed the Director-General that the Government’s budget for 2023-24 prioritized agricultural transformation and inclusive growth through climate change mitigation and adaptation, and job opportunities for youth along the various value chains.

The two also exchanged views on the importance of high-quality seeds, increasing knowledge of agricultural production practices, knowledge sharing and dissemination, and other areas of work that can support improved agricultural production and marketing to transform agrifood systems.

The Director-General underlined that Kenya’s diverse landscape is a comparative advantage for agriculture production (vertical farming) and together with improved processing and value creation can support economic transformation.  Finally, they also touched upon the importance of a coherent development agenda to drive change.