The Right to Food Coalition has challenged the government’s assertion that Kenya is food secure, warning that millions of Kenyans continue to struggle to access affordable, safe and nutritious food despite national efforts to boost food supplies.
In a press statement dated October 22, 2026, the coalition said food security should be assessed based on the realities facing households rather than national production figures, grain stocks or import plans.
The coalition was responding to remarks by Agriculture and Livestock Development Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe, who recently stated that Kenya is food secure.
While acknowledging the government’s recognition that food security extends beyond food production to affordability and access, the coalition argued that the country’s persistent hunger crisis contradicts the claim.
“The absence of famine is not the same as the presence of food security,” the coalition stated, adding that a country where millions cannot reliably access adequate, safe and nutritious food cannot be considered food secure.
The organisation cited Article 43(1)(c) of the Constitution, which guarantees every person the right to be free from hunger and to have adequate food of acceptable quality. It also pointed to Article 21(2), which obligates the State to progressively realise constitutional rights.
According to the coalition, a September 2026 Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis found that approximately 2.7 million people living in Kenya’s arid and semi-arid lands faced crisis-level acute food insecurity or worse between July and October 2026.
The figure included 348,000 people classified in the Emergency phase, representing a 55 per cent increase from the previous analysis.
The coalition further noted that 3.3 million people had experienced crisis-level food insecurity or worse earlier in the year, while 2.1 million were projected to remain affected through January 2027.
Kenya’s position in the 2026 Global Hunger Index also raised concern, with the country scoring 25.0 and ranking 105th out of 122 countries. The index classified Kenya’s hunger situation as serious.
The coalition cited Kenya National Bureau of Statistics data showing that food prices increased by 9.5 per cent in the year to September 2026, outpacing the overall inflation rate of 6.8 per cent.
It also highlighted persistent nutritional challenges, including child wasting, rural-urban disparities in stunting and high levels of thinness among women in Turkana County.
The coalition also questioned the government’s plan to import 25 million bags of maize following the National Cereals and Produce Board’s purchase of less than one million bags from local farmers.
It acknowledged that imports may be necessary to meet national demand but warned against relying on foreign supplies without addressing weaknesses in domestic agricultural production and food distribution.
According to the statement, Kenya consumes approximately 75 million bags of maize annually, meaning the planned imports would account for roughly a third of the country’s yearly consumption.
The coalition argued that post-harvest losses were contributing significantly to the supply deficit, estimating that between 20 and 36 per cent of Kenya’s maize is lost after harvesting, largely due to inadequate storage.
It called for increased investment in drying, storage and grain-handling infrastructure to reduce losses, protect farmers’ incomes and improve domestic food availability.
“A food system that must import a third of its staple after one poor season is not resilient,” the coalition said.
The organisation further urged the government to explain whether the Sh4,000 price per bag offered to farmers adequately covers production costs, citing expenses associated with seeds, fertiliser, labour, transport, taxes and levies.
It called for greater investment in irrigation, water harvesting, climate-resilient crop varieties and storage facilities to reduce the country’s vulnerability to drought.
The coalition also raised concerns over rising milk prices, saying consumers’ decisions to stockpile food out of fear of shortages reflected growing insecurity among households.
Citing KNBS data, it said packaged milk prices rose by six per cent in September alone.
While welcoming duty-free yellow maize imports for animal feed and investments in cooling facilities, the coalition called for additional measures to protect farm-gate prices while keeping milk affordable for consumers.
On food safety, the organisation welcomed the government’s 2025 decision to withdraw 77 hazardous pesticide products from the market and restrict 202 others.
However, it urged authorities to publish the outcome of a further review involving 151 products and provide an updated register of approved and prohibited pesticides.
The coalition also demanded rigorous aflatoxin and pesticide-residue testing for imported maize, insisting that imported grain should meet the same safety standards as locally produced food.
The Right to Food Coalition outlined five key measures it wants the national and county governments to implement.
First, it called on the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development to publish, within 30 days, the indicators used to support the government’s food security assessment and disclose the supply-and-demand analysis behind the maize import plan.
Second, it urged national and county governments to disclose the coverage, timeliness and adequacy of food assistance and nutrition services in areas facing crisis-level hunger, while prioritising early interventions before conditions deteriorate.
Third, it called for a review of taxes and levies on agricultural inputs and cereals, alongside practical subsidies to reduce the cost of food production.
Fourth, the coalition urged the KNBS and Ministry of Health to publish the 2025/26 nutrition survey results and regularly report food prices, dietary diversity and malnutrition levels by county.
Finally, it called on Parliament and county assemblies to ensure that food security commitments are adequately funded, with transparent expenditure reporting and mechanisms for citizens to raise concerns.
The coalition said Kenya’s hosting of the 17th Africa Day for Food and Nutrition Security celebrations in Nairobi on October 29–30, 2026, presented an opportunity for the country to demonstrate tangible progress in tackling hunger.
It urged the government to engage civil society organisations on strengthening food security monitoring and accountability.
“Food security must be measured by people’s ability to consistently access adequate, safe and nutritious food, not simply by national production or imports,” the coalition said.
The Right to Food Coalition brings together civil society organisations, grassroots groups, smallholder producers, researchers and human rights defenders working to advance the right to food in Kenya.
