The government has vowed that it will completely eradicate all the coffee cartels, improve its marketing strategies and increase prices in an elaborate bid to revive the once vibrant sector.
Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua said once cartels are eradicated, marketing and price improved, the coffee production will automatically go up leading to better returns to farmers, sufficient foreign exchange and a vibrant economy.
He regretted that cartels have been fleecing farmers of their hard earned income for far too long and warned them that their time is up.
Speaking at Three Steers hotel in Meru town during the opening ceremony of a three day Coffee Reform Conference, DP Gachagua said the government will do what it takes to ensure the coffee sector returns back on track.
“Let me assure you that the coffee sector will be back on its track once we completely eradicate all the cartels, improve marketing and the price. Coffee production will automatically go up leading to sufficient and reliable foreign exchange while the economy will inevitably become vibrant,” said the Deputy President.
He said the farmers should get at least 90% of the coffee earnings and not the peanuts they are getting after a lot of sweat while the brokers who do almost nothing are the main beneficiaries.
Gachagua said the best way to restore the farmers’ dignity is to ensure they are handsomely paid and that they don’t live in poverty after their hard work which deserves better remunerations.
“We want to restore the dignity of the farmer. Those who have been living on farmers’ sweat should now look elsewhere. Cartels have eaten enough and their time is up. 90% of coffee earnings should go directly to the farmers. This is not negotiable,” said Gachagua.
He said once the reforms are anchored in law, the government will ensure they are implemented to the letter.
The DP said all the views and deliberations from the conference will be ready to be presented to parliament within a fortnight after being consolidated.
Gachagua said the coffee sector started collapsing after the cooperative movements started sub-dividing giant unions into small entities which were uneconomical due to the operation cost involved in running them on a daily basis.
He regretted that marketers took advantage of the situation and planted their puppets in all coffee societies after heavily bank rolling them during campaigns in order to later buy coffee at throw away prices.
“The rains started beating us when we allowed cooperatives to subdivide giant unions to small entities which were uneconomical due to the operations cost involved. In the entities, everyone wants to be a leader. Campaigns are very intense because marketers heavily bank roll their puppets in order to get favourable coffee prices later. Such puppets should be removed,” said the Deputy President.
He challenged the coffee sector stakeholders to go back to research which can resolve the many challenges coffee is facing including the coffee berry diseases.
The DP regretted that the research institutions have become a pale shadow of themselves and called for their rehabilitation.
He hit out at leaders who failed to turn up for the conference despite being invited and coming from coffee growing zones and wondered how such legislators will vote once the bill is presented to the parliaments.
