- Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Munya said the move was part of the reforms in the tea sector aimed at reducing the cost of production
- Munya said many farmers have been grappling with production costs without getting any returns
- The CS reaffirmed that the government reforms are inevitable and that it will not succumb to any pressure from cartels
The government has confirmed the release of KSh 1.2 billion to subsidise the cost of fertiliser sold to tea farmers in the country.
Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya said the move was part of the reforms in the tea sector aimed at reducing the cost of production in Kenya.
Speaking at the Port of Mombasa after flagging off 55,000 tones of Kenya Tea Development Authority (KTDA) fertiliser, Munya said the government aimed to reduce the price of tea fertiliser.
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“The government has decided to support the farmers with a subsidy so that the price can be lower, and the proposal to support them with KSh 1.2 billion to reduce the fertiliser by at least KSh 400 per 50kg per bag,” said Munya.After the subsidy, the cost will decline slightly from KSh 3,072 to KSh 2,500 per 50kg bag depending on the distance of transhipment.
Munya said the future is producing fertiliser locally.
“We are not importing subsidised fertiliser, we are subsidising the cost of fertiliser that they have imported, to ease the burden of the farmer, but there is a plan to see if they can buy locally manufactured fertiliser to beat the 20% fertiliser deficit,” the CS explained.Munya termed the high cost of fertiliser as a problem attributed to COVID-19 import restrictions globally, therefore giving a green light to local KTDA to embrace local fertilizer manufacturers.
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“We want to see what we can do to make fertiliser very affordable, so that the primary beneficiary who is the farmer gets relieved and gets returns from their produce,” he stated.Munya said it is a game-changer in terms of reducing cost. Many farmers have been grappling with production costs without getting any returns.
The CS reaffirmed that the government reforms are inevitable and that it will not succumb to any pressure from cartels of individuals blocking farmers from getting value for money for their produce.
“We have also implemented the reserve price with the new board that came in for all small holder farmers, and it’s doing well, despite a lot of objections,” he said.According to Munya, the new reserve price implemented after President Uhuru Kenyatta's interventions is now at KSh 267 per kilo up from KSh 208.
“We are seeing increased uptake in the market and the price is also going up, we are looking forward to also transporting tea to Mombasa by railway so that cost of warehousing and transport is reduced,” he added.Story by Yvonne Mutunga, TUKO.co.ke correspondent.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
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