Ruto Flags Off Relief Food To Drought Hit Areas

President William Ruto on Monday flagged off a consignment of relief food and animal feed for 3.5 million Kenyans afflicted by severe drought in 23 Counties across the country.

The consignment consisting of 20,000 bags of beans and rice, cooking oil, and animal feed will be distributed by the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) as part of a multi-agency remedial intervention to alleviate suffering.

At the same time, the Kenyan Head of State called for accountability in distributing the rations.

He said the government was determined to pursue proactive interventions to ensure that the food crisis is tackled once and for all.

"Every week, we will assess the situation and see what this intervention will mean for the people around the country and what additionally can be done as we go into the future," said President Ruto.

"I have asked our development partners that we will have a meeting on Wednesday so that we can harmonize our approach and make sure that we avoid any duplication in any part of the country and so that we can leverage on the county teams that are assisting in identifying beneficiaries of this food," he added.

At State House, Nairobi flagged off relief food to vulnerable households in Garissa, Mandera, Wajir, Marsabit, Baringo, and Kajiado Counties.

The Head of State thanked non-state agencies that have partnered with the Gov't in offering the relief saying food, water, and associated non-food items will be dispatched weekly based on a continuous needs assessment programme to be led by the Deputy President, Rigathi Gachagua.

©Standard Gazette, 2021. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s publisher is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Standard Gazette with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.