Ruto promises to raise milk price to 65 shillings per litre in Kenya — Nation Kenya

Kenyan President William Ruto announced in Kapsabet on October 18 his intention to decentralize the state dairy company New Kenya Cooperative Creameries (New KCC) in order to give farmers more control over local plants. He also promised to raise the price of milk to 65 Kenyan shillings per litre, Nation Kenya reports.

Ruto said the government plans to settle 400 million Kenyan shillings in arrears owed to milk producers. According to him, the proposed reform is intended to ensure higher payments to farmers and enable them to directly benefit from the operations of the enterprises.

Autonomous plants for farmers

The president said that New KCC plants should become autonomous and be transferred into the ownership of farmers in the regions where they operate. The state, he said, plans to invest capital to support their operations.

Ruto stressed that the government seeks to abandon the model under which plants are managed remotely from Nairobi. He believes that local ownership and autonomy can increase efficiency, improve payments to producers, and boost enterprise profitability.

More current news is available on the UA.News Telegram channel Telegram.

Over the past three years, the government has already invested 8 billion Kenyan shillings in New KCC to stabilize its operations. The president linked the proposed changes to reforms in the tea, coffee, and sugar industries, which, according to his administration's assessment, are intended to strengthen farmers' positions and increase their incomes.

Other projects in Nandi County

During his trip to Nandi County, Ruto also announced a plan to turn the Eldoret—Kapsabet—Chavakali road into a divided highway. According to him, the government allocated 21 billion Kenyan shillings for road infrastructure, including 1.3 billion shillings for the Yala—Chepkumia—Kobojoy road.

The president promised 500 million Kenyan shillings for the construction of a Level 5 hospital in Kapsabet. He also said that Koitalel Samoei University, currently a college within the University of Nairobi, is to receive a university charter in February 2027. The government allocated about 3.5 billion Kenyan shillings for the development of the institution's infrastructure in Nandi Hills.

In addition, Ruto promised to complete the construction of Kipchoge Stadium in Kapsabet and equip it with a gym and modern facilities for athletics training.