Government upgrades Buruma Irrigation Scheme to boost rice production
TAITA TAVETA, Kenya — July 23, 2025 — The government has embarked on a major rehabilitation and expansion of the Buruma Irrigation Scheme in Taita Taveta County, in a move aimed at improving rice yields, food security, and boosting rural incomes through creating employment across the agricultural value chain.
The initiative is part of the broader Bura Irrigation Development Project, which is transitioning the scheme from an unreliable and costly pump-based system to a more efficient gravity-fed irrigation model.
In a statement shared on his official X account, Dr. Raymond Omollo, the Principal Secretary for the Ministry of Interior and National Administration, said the agricultural sector is central to the government’s Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA).
“Agriculture remains a cornerstone of the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA), with its immense potential to strengthen Kenya’s national food basket, create employment along the agricultural value chain and uplift rural livelihoods,” said Dr. Omollo.
The project, which is being implemented by the Ministry of Water, Sanitation and Irrigation through the National Irrigation Authority (NIA), involves a full-scale upgrade of irrigation infrastructure and expansion of land under cultivation.
Currently, 1,200 acres are being prepared for rice cultivation—one of the key crops for the region. Farmers are already recording yields of up to 35 bags of rice per acre, with expectations of higher and more stable output once the rehabilitation is complete.
To enhance water management and protect farmland from flooding, the works include 12 kilometers of riverbank protection, construction of new water diversion structures, and the installation of sedimentation basins.
Officials say the improved irrigation system will support year-round farming, stabilize crop yields, and help unlock the agricultural potential of the region.
The upgrade comes as part of Kenya’s broader strategy to modernize irrigation schemes and reduce dependency on rain-fed agriculture amid changing climate conditions.