Reforms in tea sector bring hope to small-scale farmers
Tea farmers register to vote in Githongo, Meru. As we entrench reforms mostly targeting small-scale tea farmers, it is notable that the sector is one of the key drivers of Kenya’s socioeconomic development and a key pillar for economic growth, directly providing a source of livelihood to over 750,000 tea farmers.
Smallholder tea farming in Kenya accounts for about 65 per cent of the total tea production with the rest being produced by multinationals.
The sector has a history of excellence but, more importantly, with tea reforms taking root and political goodwill, the small-scale farmers are in for higher dividends. This is because the potential in our agriculture as we move towards non-reliance on rain-fed agriculture is enormous.
The tea sector is a key foreign exchange earner for the nation as well as a catalyst for the growth of the local and rural economies. Kenya is the third-leading producer and biggest exporter of tea, accounting for 28 per cent of the world’s exports. In 2021, the sector earned Sh136 billion in forex with the projection for last year Sh150 billion. This money mostly moving to the bottom of our economic pyramid means empowerment of great proportions.
As we entrench reforms mostly targeting small-scale tea farmers, it is notable that the sector is one of the key drivers of Kenya’s socioeconomic development and a key pillar for economic growth, directly providing a source of livelihood to over 750,000 tea farmers, 90 per cent of them smallholders, and indirectly to more than seven million Kenyans, or 13 per cent of the population. It contributes about two per cent of the GDP and four per cent of the agriculture GDP.
Vision 2030
As Kenya counts on agriculture to drive the attainment of Vision 2030 while still training our guns towards the 2030 Agenda, the tea sector forms the nuclear to power this engine.
There are many reforms that have also been introduced by the Tea Act, 2020, aimed at improving returns to tea farmers, especially small-scale farmers. These farmers have been incurring costs unnecessarily and are affected by price fluctuations and governance issues that bring efficiency in most of the chain almost to a stop. The reformed sector would be key in creating millions of jobs for young people, bearing in mind the over five million unemployed Kenyans and the slow rural economies.
Even as the tea reforms take shape, key successes critical to the future of the sector are notable. For instance, tea farmers now get better returns and early payments and have a big voice in electing their leaders. This is critical in avoiding farmer exploitation and a big blow to the middlemen, who have, for a long time, been a hallmark of corruption in the sector. Last year alone, tea revenue grew by 3.5 per cent.
Notably, the decision by the smallholder tea factories to fix a minimum reserve in July 2021 to stem declining tea prices from an all-time low of $1.89 (Sh233) per kilogramme has resulted in improved prices to an average of $2.64 last October. This is a strong indicator that the ongoing reforms require more support than ever before for farmers’ benefit.
Another key milestone towards improving the lives of the tea farmers is the supply of fertilisers to the smallholder tea growers under the Kenya Kwanza government’s fertiliser subsidy programme. This will ease the farmers’ burden in a big way and will be a key catalyst to the entire agricultural reforms for increased productivity of all the sectors.
Mr Muthaura is the CEO of Kenya Tea Development Agency Holdings Ltd. [email protected].
