Nairobi — Wheat farmers in the Southern Rift Valley on Tuesday said they were unable to prepare their land for planting due to a serious shortage of diesel.

"It will not be possible for some farmers to plant wheat next month because some parts will be too dry," said Mr Samuel Gitonga, the chairman of the Nakuru chapter of Kenya National Federation of Agricultural Producers.

Mr Gitonga said that some farmers had been harrowing their farms in readiness for planting wheat but had now suspended it due to lack of diesel. Farmers in the Rift Valley Province produce about three million bags of wheat annually but Mr Gitonga said that the target may not be achieved.

He said that the transport industry was also affected and expressed fear that this would hamper the movement of farm produce to urban centres. Several filling stations in Nakuru Town confirmed there was a shortage of diesel, blaming Kenya Pipeline Corporation and the Kenya Revenue Authority for the shortage.

They suspected that there was a problem of delays in clearance in Mombasa and urged the Government to sort out the problem.