Coffee reforms are steadily on track – Gachagua

"Our farmers must earn what they deserve."

In Summary
  • Gachagua was tasked by President William Ruto to lead coffee sub-sector reforms in the country.
  • The deputy president is expected to attend the Coffee Producers and Roasters Forum in Medellin, Colombia to push for the same.
Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua during a church service at Laare in Meru on September 10, 2023.
Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua during a church service at Laare in Meru on September 10, 2023.
Image: PCS

Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has said coffee reforms in the country are steadily on track.

In a statement after arriving in Colombia on Tuesday, the DP said Kenyan Coffee farmers must earn what they rightfully deserve.

He said one of the measures they have employed to achieve this is by engaging stakeholders in high-value coffee markets.

This, he said, will enable them to achieve better prices.

"Coffee reforms are steadily on track. Our farmers must earn what they deserve - more money in their pockets. One of the strategies of doing so is engaging high-value markets for better prices," Gachagua said.

The deputy president is expected to attend the Coffee Producers and Roasters Forum in Medellin, Colombia to push for the same.

Gachagua was tasked by President William Ruto to lead coffee sub-sector reforms in the country.

In August, the DP said frameworks to support coffee sub-sector reforms will be ready before the end of the year.

He said among other institutional reforms, the government aims to revive the Coffee Board of Kenya and the Coffee Research Institute.

This is alongside strengthening the New Kenya Planters Co-operative Union.

Gachagua said President William Ruto's administration intends to increase coffee production from the current 50,000 metric tonnes annually to 200,000 metric tonnes within five years.

"I want to assure you of the state's commitment to pushing sustainable results in this sub-sector," he said.

"We are willing to take the political heat from any direction it comes from because we are persuaded that great leaders are defined by their ability and capacity to take hard decisions in the interest of their society and country." 

The DP said this is despite alleged cartels attempting to sabotage the government's plans for coffee reforms.

"It is not a smooth sail and it may take a little longer. Cartels are working hard against us. Since the coffee conference in Meru, the market has been disrupted in major ways to disrupt the farmers' trust in these reforms," Gachagua said.

However, the DP vowed that the Kenya Kwanza government will remain unbowed on the coffee reforms.

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