Ruto touts Galana-Kulalu as key to ending hunger in Kenya
By Cynthia Lodite, July 25, 2025President William Ruto has reaffirmed Kenyans that he is working on ensuring Kenya’s food security is in a better space.
Ruto shared his reaffirmation to Kenyans on his X account on Friday, 25,2025, while further stating that his government has several initiatives on standby to scale up the country’s agricultural state.
Ruto stated that the Galana-Kulalu Food Security project is among many initiatives expected to help scale up food production in the county.
“We are on course to make Kenya food secure. The transformative Galana-Kulalu Food Security Project is one of our many initiatives that will scale up our production,” said Ruto.
The head of state’s remarks come just months after he defended the government’s decision to partner with three private firms from the United Arab Emirates in the revival of the multi-billion-shilling Galana Kulalu irrigation project.
At the time, the President highlighted that the move by the government is expected to significantly boost food production and create jobs for Kenyan youth.
“We have two private firms, but one, Selu Company, has already set base here, ready to kick start food production in a 20,000-acre farm. Another company from the United Arab Emirates will also invest here to produce food,’’ President Ruto said during his tour of the project on May 16, 2025.
Galana-Kulalu expansion
Following the government’s adoption of the Public-Private Partnership (PPP), Galana-Kulau has seen an expansion with the government allocating several companies acres of land for maize production.
Some of the companies include Nyumba Group and Selu Farm Limited, each receiving 5,000 acres. Other partners include Bayer Crop Science, Yara, and Irrico International. Meanwhile, with the ongoing negotiations, Kenyans may see companies from Italy and the United Arab Emirates take up to 800,000 acres for production.
Since its inception in 2013, the Galana-Kulalu food security project has expanded seed maize production to over 700 acres, with targets to reach 3,200 acres by October and 5,000 acres by February 2026.