… PS Kimotho said the State department is also working to operationalise the Galana Kulalu Food Security Project, which is expected to support the production of more than 14 million bags of maize annually from 200,000 acres under irrigation. …
Audio By VocalizeKenya is staking Sh598 billion on a 10-year irrigation overhaul anchored on the revival of the Galana Kulalu Food Security Project, a scheme long written off as a costly failure, as the government moves to end reliance on food imports. …
… Flagship projects such as the Menengai Geothermal Project were cited as examples of expanding private sector participation in clean energy development, while the Galana Kulalu Food Security Project underscores the role of large-scale infrastructure investment in irrigation expans …
… Projects such as the Menengai Geothermal Project and the Galana Kulalu Food Security Project were cited as examples of how private sector participation is supporting Kenya’s clean energy transition, food security, irrigation expansion, and industrial development. …
Kenya plans to nearly double the acreage under irrigation from 664,000 acres in 2021/2022 to 1.29 million acres by 2027/2028, according to the State Department for Irrigation's National Irrigation Sector Investment Plan. The expansion is aimed at enhancing food security, increasing agricultural productivity, creating jobs, and building resilience against climate change.
Why it matters
Kenya aims to double irrigated land to 1.29 million acres by 2028 to boost food security, agricultural productivity, and climate resilience.
Kenya plans to nearly double the acreage under irrigation from 664,000 acres in 2021/2022 to 1.29 million acres by 2027/2028, according to the State Department for Irrigation's National Irrigation Sector Investment Plan. The expansion is aimed at enhancing food security, increasing agricultural productivity, creating jobs, and building resilience against climate change.
The government unveiled a 10-year National Irrigation Sector Investment Plan costing Sh598 billion, centred on reviving the Galana Kulalu Food Security Project in the Coast region, with the goal of nearly doubling irrigated land and achieving food self-sufficiency. Once fully operational, Galana Kulalu alone is expected to produce over 14 million bags of maize annually.
Kenya's Public Private Partnership (PPP) portfolio has reached Sh1.7 trillion across 51 projects in infrastructure sectors including transport, energy, water, and digital connectivity. Ten projects are already under implementation while forty-one remain at various stages of the PPP project cycle, as the government seeks private sector participation to bridge infrastructure financing gaps.
Kenya is increasingly positioning Public Private Partnerships at the centre of its infrastructure financing strategy amid growing development demands and public finance pressure. The Kenya PPP Symposium 2026 convened government officials, institutional investors, banks, and private sector players to discuss infrastructure investment mobilisation and private capital participation.
Kenya's agricultural sector growth slumped to 2.8 per cent in 2025 from 4.4 per cent in 2024, attributed to unfavourable weather patterns with below-average rainfall that affected crops such as tea, beans and sugarcane, though maize production increased. The agriculture, forestry and fishing sector contributed Sh4.1 trillion to the country's Sh17.6 trillion nominal GDP in 2025.
The Galana Kulalu Food Security project in Kilifi and Tana River, a 20,000-acre model farm, is advancing after nearly two decades of stalled progress, with private firms now investing millions of shillings in agribusinesses in the area.