Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya
After a long wait the
government has ordered full
implementation of the Tea Regulations, enacted to restore sanity in the sector and bring to
an end farmers exploitation and enhance governance.
Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya said in the new move
the existing conflict of interest in the tea sector will come to an end thus
gain to the small scale growers.
He ordered the Agriculture Food Authority (AFA) led by Interim Director
Antony Muriithi to immediately undertake a technical inspection of the newly
installed E-Auction system to ensure that the auction is operating consistently
with best practices for commodity trading.
The much awaited regulations should be fully regulations
executed by March next year.
The government
initiated reforms in the tea value chain, Munya said, is geared towards
increasing revenue to thegrowers, as opposed to middle men and brokers.
He outlined challenges
in the tea sector as low prices, delayed payments, low initial payment and
bonus and fluctuating net earnings to growers.
“The governance
weakness in the whole sub sector including and not limited to conflict of
interest in the operation of Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) and its subsidiaries”
said Munya.
He insisted that the principal of the regulations is to set the
tea industry value chain on a transparent, accountable, competitive and
profitable path, to empower farmers, to create sector accountability and to
give farmers incentives to improve their crop through improved earnings and
greater decision-making power.
“The roadmap for implementation and the schedule of compliance
requirements is ready and will start today,” said Munya.
The provision in the regulations, the CS said, will allow
renegotiation and amendment of the current agreements, especially agreements
relating to management agents and factories.
In the past three years, Kiru Tea Factory has been fighting for
the reforms in the sector, a move that led to protracted legal battles.
The battles emerged after the board of the factory chaired
by Chege Kirundi sacked KTDA Company Secretary John Omanga and replaced him
with Bernard Kiragu.
