Top news items in Kenya's major media outlets

NAIROBI, April 12 (Xinhua) -- The following are the news highlights in Kenyan media outlets on Thursday.

-- Kenya could lose half of its maize crop and face a massive food crisis following an invasion of the fall armyworm. Although the Ministry of Agriculture has no reliable data on the extent of the infestation and the impact it will have on food security, the U.S. Agency for International Aid (USAid) estimates that 50 percent of the maize crop could be destroyed. (Daily Nation)

-- The 38 million U.S. dollars contract for the supply of elections technology awarded to French firm Safran is at the centre of the CEO Ezra Chiloba suspension. Electoral commission chairman relied on an internal audit questioning the single-sourcing of the technology to kick out the CEO. (The Standard)

-- Doctors and lecturers could be the biggest beneficiaries in the reduced development spending proposed by the National Treasury in the supplementary budget. The Treasury made drastic conditions to meet the pay demands of the striking lecturers and doctors. (The Star)

-- Increased private consumption and a normalization of the weather are expected to lift Kenya's economic growth to 5.5 percent this year, the World Bank forecasted. (Business Daily) Enditem