Coffee farmers under National Coffee Co-operative Union (NACCU) on Friday called on President William Ruto to intervene and save them from cartels interfering the current push to reform the sector.
The farmers said they voted for President Ruto since he promised to reform the sector.
“Coffee farmers overwhelmingly voted for you on the basis of your commitment and focus on Agriculture as major pillar of Kenya Kwanza Manifesto.
“Your excellency, we would like to draw your attention to fact that the on-going coffee reforms is a classic example of the bottom-up approach.
“It is farmer-centric with an overall goal of ensuring coffee farmers are paid fairly and on time.
“However, its implementation is held hostage by dominance of monoposonistic conduct of a few buyers who collude with millers and marketers over the coffee prices.
“This cartel-like behaviour that has bedevilled the coffee sector and denied our rightful share of coffee revenues,” the farmers said.
They, therefore, called on Ruto direct the Agriculture Ministry to move with speed instruct Nairobi Coffee Exchange to allow the Coffee Co-operative Unions that have been licensed by The Capital Markets Authority to sell their coffee directly at the auction floor.
“Implementation of The Crops (Coffee) (General) Regulations, 2019 and The Capital Markets (Coffee Exchange) Regulations, 2020; fast track the Annulment of the illegal Crops (Coffee) (General) (Amendments) Regulations 2022 which were illegally gazetted by former Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture.
“Request the Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture to prioritize the submission of the Sessional Paper 2022 to the Cabinet for approve thereafter tabling the National Assembly and Senate for concurrence and adoption; request Parliament to prioritize The Coffee Bill, 2020 (Senate Bill No.22) which was passed by the senate on 5th August 2021,” they said.
