Rice farmers in the Mwea Irrigation Scheme have urged the Government to fast-track payment of Sh210 million owed to them after they supplied 25,760 bags of rice to the Kenya National Trading Corporation (KNTC).

The farmers, through the Mwea Rice Growers Multipurpose Co-operative Society (MRGM), said the delayed payment was affecting their ability to pay school fees, purchase farm inputs and meet household expenses.

Speaking at the MRGM offices in Mwea, Chief Executive Officer Anthony Waweru said the Government’s intervention in the rice marketing crisis was welcome, but called for the payment process to be expedited.

Waweru said farmers had faced serious marketing challenges since January, prompting them to seek Government intervention. By the end of June, the Ministry of Agriculture, KNTC and MRGM had agreed that KNTC would purchase rice held by the society and facilitate payment to farmers