Agriculture CS, Peter Munya Launches the Coffee Prices Stabilization Framework

On Wednesday, the Cabinet Secretary for agriculture Peter Munya launched the Coffee Prices Stabilization Framework, which seeks to address challenges in the Coffee Subsector.

The program will see farmers’ earnings, foreign exchange, and Food and Nutrition Security improve while creating more employment opportunities. The initiative is part of the ongoing coffee reforms across the country.

In his Twitter post, the Cs noted that the sector has been facing many challenges over the last two decades, which has led to a drop in production, bringing the number of kgs per tree down to 2 kgs from 6kgs.

To stop the decline, the government developed various interventions to ensure full recovery of the sub-sector, including establishing the Commodities Fund, Coffee Revitalization Program, Cherry Advance Revolving Fund, and E-Voucher Subsidy Program, among others.

A total of 15,703 farmers from 16 counties have benefited from 2.7 Billion shillings Cherry Revolving Fund whereby 177,836,478 shillings have been disbursed under the New Kenya Planters Cooperative Union (KPCU).

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The government granted coffee farmers a 1 billion shillings fertilizer subsidy to cushion them against high prices in late April. Approximately 45,000 coffee farmers among the 80,000 registered with the New Kenya Planters Cooperative Union (KPCU) benefited from the subsidy program, which also covers the purchase of pesticides.

Coffee production plays a massive part in the Kenyan economy providing approximately 230 million US Dollars annually and a source of livelihood for over 800,000 small-scale farmers. It is the second most grown cash crop in Kenya’s Kericho county after tea, covering approximately 2,000 Ha.

Other coffee-growing counties are Kiambu, Kirinyaga, Murang’a, Nyeri, and Embu, all in the Mt Kenya region. More with great potential outside the Mt Kenya region are Bungoma, Trans-Nzoia, Nandi, and Kisii.

According to the International Coffee Organization, Kenya, on average, produces 800,000 bags of coffee annually. The coffee industry export earnings have improved by 33% between 2014 and 2021.