Muguka leaves being sold in Kerugoya town in Kirinyaga county / ALICE WAITHERA
Muguka farmers and traders from Mt Kenya region want MPs to do away with a bill proposing its delisting as a scheduled crop.
The Crops (Amendment) Bill that was tabled in the National Assembly in May last year by Kilifi MP Owen Baya, seeks to make changes to the Crops Act, 2022, to have stricter control imposed on the production and marketing of the crop.
The Bill also seeks to classify muguka as a narcotic, citing studies indicating it contains high levels of cathinone and cathine substances known to have stimulant and psychoactive substances that contribute to mental illnesses.
The Bill has received support of coastal leaders as farmers and traders express concerns that they risk losing their livelihoods if it's passed.
Samuel Chomba, a trader from Kirinyaga county, however, said delisting the crop would be equal to economic sabotage for the thousands of people depending on it for survival.
“Muguka contributes a great deal to the economy and supports our families. Many households in Kirinyaga have embraced it as their cash crop of choice and are able to educate their children from it,” he said, noting the families will be left without a source of income if the Bill is adopted.
Schedule crops are considered vital for the country’s growth and economy, and are subjected to oversight in production, processing, marketing and sustainability.
Some of the scheduled crops include cash crops such as tea and coffee, horticultural crops, food crops and industrial crops such as sugar cane and cotton.
They dispelled rumours muguka causes infertility, saying farmers have consumed it for years and are still able to start and sustain their families.
Chomba said the effects of the Bill will be felt across the region and asked President William Ruto to keep his promise of supporting small-scale farmers and traders through his policies.
“Our hope is that our MPs will rise against this Bill and ensure it does not go through because it has the potential of impoverishing many of us,” he said.
In Embu county, another muguka producing area, farmers have claimed the Bill is ill-intentioned, saying the government should instead be considering supporting farmers by seeking a larger market.
Leonard Muthende from Mbeere North said the constituency is at a disadvantage as its MP was recently appointed as the Cabinet Secretary for Public Service and residents have no one to fight for their interests when the Bill is debated in the National Assembly.
Embu produces 36,000 kilos of muguka daily that are transported to the coast region for sale, generating about Sh10.8 million that boosts the local economy significantly, with a kilogramme costing between Sh300 and Sh1,000, far more than tea and coffee.
Kathuri Nganjire said a crop that generates that much revenue should attract more support from both levels of government noting that the sector employs thousands nationally.
“Destabilising such a serious crop will have a major impact on the economy of the country and deny families depending on it their earnings,” he said.
In 2023, the government published the Crops (Miraa) Regulations that allowed the Agriculture CS to impose levies on the produce and products at a rate of two per cent for exports and four per cent for imports.
The law was, however, criticised by leaders from muguka and miraa producing counties that decried not being involved during its drafting.
