Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua says comprehensive reforms currently underway in the tea sub-sector are bearing fruit and that farmers are expected to receive higher bonuses this year.
Speaking on Wednesday afternoon after chairing a meeting with KTDA directors at his Karen residence, DP Gachagua noted that the announcement follows the implementation of a number of proposals by the Tea Subsector stakeholders conference held in Kericho County in July.
”This is a notable positive outcome from the Tea Subsector stakeholders’ Conference I chaired in Kericho in July this year which provided a much-needed platform to listen to the farmers’ concerns and agree on the best interventions to improve their earnings. The pay will be one of the highest in recent years, signifying the importance of stakeholder engagement in the bid to reform the sector,” DP Gachgua’s statement reads in part.
Several tea factories under the KTDA umbrella have already declared higher bonuses for farmers, which has been partly boosted by the weakening shilling against the dollar.
Bonuses per kilo have improved by between Ksh6 and Ksh9 across different factories in the country, with farmers earning between Ksh30 and Ksh44 per kilo.
”We will not relent until the smallholder farmers get their rightful pay that’s commensurate with the hard work they put in their farms. President William Ruto is keen on better earnings and has mandated me with instituting long-term reforms in the subsector,” he added.
According to Gachagua, a profitable Tea sub-sector is good for the country as it is one of the leading foreign exchange earners.
This year, the Kenya Kwanza administration projects the tea export earnings to rise to about Sh150 billion up from Sh138 billion last year.
