Policies for agriculture consist of government decisions that influence the level and stability of input and output prices, public investments affecting agricultural production, costs and revenues and allocation of resources. These policies affect agriculture either directly or indirectly. Improved agricultural production has been seen as one of the overall objectives for poverty reduction in Kenya. The objectives of agricultural sector strategy have been increasing agricultural growth, seen as important for increasing rural incomes and ensuring equitable distribution. Due to limited availability of high potential land, it has been envisaged that increasing agricultural production will have to come from intensification of production through increased use of improved inputs, diversification especially from low to high value crops, commercialisation of smallholder agriculture, and increased value addition through stronger linkages with other sectors. In the following sections, we review some of the key policy issues and concerns with respect to the sector's development.
A paper for the Future Agricultures Consortium workshop,Institute of Development Studies, 20-22 March 2006. 41 pp.