Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale has handed over irrigation pumps to three farms in Garissa County after farmers raised the request during President William Ruto’s recent visit to the region.
The equipment — 15 diesel pumps and three 10-horsepower high-pressure water pumps — went to Raya, Lagdera and Balambala farms.
CS Duale said the machines will help farmers draw water more cheaply from wells and the Tana River and expand production of watermelons, bananas, mangoes, lemons, tomatoes and livestock fodder.
“I have responded to the requests of our farmers. The equipment will enable us scale up irrigation and production, and open up more opportunities for the people of Garissa County. We want to see Garissa realise its potential and become a county of agricultural produce,” Duale said at the handover.
Garissa is among Kenya’s driest counties, long known more for pastoralism than crop farming. Investment along the Tana and other water sources has been growing, and farmers say irrigation is the main buffer against recurring drought.
The new pumps are also expected to cut the high cost of lifting water from deep wells and to support year-round horticulture.
The handover is framed as part of the government’s Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA), which prioritises irrigation and commercial farming in arid and semi-arid counties.
Higher output creates local jobs, ease fodder shortages for livestock keepers, and add to the national push to produce more food at home.
Farm staff, Members of the County Assembly and National Government Administrative Officers attended the event.
