By Moses Lokeris
At least 5,000 hectares of crops worth 2 billion shillings are said to have been destroyed by the ongoing dry spell in Kotido District, leaving hundreds of families starring at hunger.
Sam Richard Erechu, the Kotido District Production Officer says his office collected data from all the 19 Sub Counties in the district. He explains that the data is set to be forwarded to the Office of the Prime Minister for possible support.
He notes that the affected gardens comprises groundnuts, maize, sim-sim, sorghum, millet, green gram, sunflower and vegetables among others.
When converted into cash, the drought has caused a loss of over 200 billion shillings to farmers who had invested their savings into farming.
According to Erechu, the lengthy period of drought begun in March immediately after what was thought to be the onset of the rainy season.
Currently, farmers are left in desperation as the hot sun has not spared any crop in the gardens including vegetables for the families to survive on.
Erechu has however urged the public to remain calm as they wait for a response from the Ministry of Relief, Disaster Preparedness and Refugees for possible relief.
