Hundreds of small-scale farmers in Nakuru County are unaware of the necessity to insure their crops and livestock against loss in case of prolonged dry spell and disease attack, an agricultural specialist has said. According to David Kimani, although banks have launched crop and livestock insurance products, the targeted small scale farmers are still in the dark over their existence. “From my experience of working with the small scale farmers in Nakuru County, I have realised that many of them do not even know what an insurance is and how it works,” he said on Monday in Rongai after meeting more than 50 farmers who had visited a local farm to learn about farming watermelons. The agricultural specialist noted the need to sensitise the farmers on the insurance as it could save them from the financial burden of starting afresh upon loss of farm possessions. He said the county government could collaborate with the respective banks providing the products in creating awareness on the benefits of the insurance. “It is very sad when a farmer loses everything to a disease or drought and does not have a means to get back on his or her feet,” he said. He however encouraged farmers to seek advice from agriculture officials as they have rich information on how to avoid total crop and livestock losses. Source - http://www.hivisasa.com