Coffee sector reforms begin paying off for Kirinyaga's farmers

Kirinyaga County’s long-suffering coffee farmers are celebrating a historic pay for their crop.

As recently as 2023, frustrated growers were uprooting coffee trees due to persistently low prices and high input costs.

Now, they will share a record Sh7.4 billion. The latest payments range between Sh104 and Sh157.40 per kilogramme of cherry, with the average payout standing at Sh139 per kilogramme.

“Our coffee farmers are beginning to enjoy the fruits of their labour, with impressive cherry payouts this season,” Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru said.

“Our county-level interventions, from extension services to cooperative strengthening, together with national government support on coffee reforms and subsidised farm inputs, are delivering real impact. When we work together, the farmer wins.”

Coffee officials, farmers and politicians attribute the huge payout to government support, especially in the provision of subsidised farm inputs, training and marketing of the produce.

The success is also due to reforms in the coffee subsector that allowed farmers to sell directly to buyers at the Nairobi Coffee Auction.

Coffee production in Kenya shot up from 49.5 thousand tonnes during the 2023-24 season to 51.4 thousand tonnes in 2024-25, according to the Economic Survey 2026 released by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics.

The growth aligns with the Kenya Kwanza administration's targeted interventions under the five pillars of the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda.

President William Ruto’s government aims to shift agriculture from subsistence to a productive, technology-driven sector.

The goal is to enhance food security, raise farmers’ incomes and expand exports through irrigation, subsidised inputs and improved market access.

Although agriculture’s overall growth slowed down to 2.8 per cent from 4.3 per cent the previous year, key subsectors performed well. Maize production improved by 2.4 per cent to 45.8 million bags.

Rice paddy production increased by 6.4 per cent to 303.7 thousand tonnes, supported by a 5.3 per cent expansion in cropped area to 48,379 hectares across all irrigation schemes.

Fresh horticultural export volumes increased by 13.8 per cent to 457.9 thousand tonnes, with overall earnings rising by 5.3 per cent to Sh143.8 billion.

The volume of cut flower exports increased by 27.4 per cent to 130.6 thousand tonnes, while earnings grew by 12.8 per cent to Sh81.3 billion in 2025.

Milk production increased by 3.5 per cent to 5.5 billion litres. Similarly, the volume of marketed milk production increased by 11.5 per cent to 1.0 billion litres during the same period.

On the other hand, wheat production fell by 18.2 per and green leaf tea output dropped by 7.8 per cent to 2,476.7 thousand tonnes in 2025.

Sugarcane production dropped by 24.7 per cent to 7,051.9 thousand tonnes while the production of dry pyrethrum flowers dropped by 18.2 per cent to 1,337.0 tonnes. Earnings from exports of fresh vegetables declined by 9.0 per cent to Sh 21.3 billion.

The country’s economy expanded by 4.6 per cent last year, marginally down by 0.1 per cent from 4.7 per cent the previous year.

Responding to critics of the government’s performance, Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi said the growth demonstrated “significant resilience” despite multiple domestic and global shocks.

The growth rate is above the global real GDP expansion of 3.3 per cent and Africa’s average of 4.4 per cent.

It was not only agriculture that recorded progress but all sectors of the economy, the Economic Survey 2026 says.

Construction rebounded from a 0.7 per cent drop in 2024 to grow by 6.8 per cent on the back of the affordable housing programme.

Cement production rose from 8,852.6 thousand tonnes in 2024 to 10,442.7 thousand tonnes. The quantities of basic metals manufactured grew by 4.9 per cent.

The length of paved roads stood at 25.4 thousand kilometres in 2025, while residential housing units completed by the State Department for Housing and Urban Development more than quadrupled, from 1,655 units in 2024 to 6,738 units.

The fisheries sector experienced notable growth, with the total quantity of fish landed increasing by 12.3 per cent to 189,150.6 tonnes, while the value increased by 39.5 per cent to Sh54.9 billion.

Similarly, mining and quarrying recovered from a 7.8 per cent contraction in 2024 to 14.9 per cent, partly driven by increased production of minerals used in cement production.

Other sectors that recorded notable growth included accommodation and food service (15.6 per cent), public administration (8.3), financial and insurance (6.5), and information and communication (4.8).

Transportation and storage expanded by 3.7 per cent and wholesale and retail trade by 3.6 per cent.

Total recorded employment, excluding small-scale agriculture, increased to 21.6 million from 20.8 million recorded in 2024.

The total number of new jobs generated in the economy last year was 822.1 thousand, with 87.2 per cent of them in the informal sector. The informal sector employment rose by 716.8 thousand jobs to stand at 18.1 million.

Total domestic demand for petroleum products increased by 9.9 per cent to 5.7 million tonnes, reflecting increased consumption across major sectors.

Consumption demand for Liquefied Petroleum Gas increased by 14.7 per cent to 475.9 thousand tonnes, supported by government interventions, including the implementation of the National LPG Growth Strategy, which promoted uptake through subsidised cylinders for low-income households and installation of LPG systems in public learning institutions.

Last year, the manufacturing sector accounted for 7.1 per cent to the national GDP. Total manufacturing output grew by two per cent to Sh3,817.4 billion, supported by expansion across both domestic‐focused and export‐oriented activities.

The tourism sector recorded improved performance as visitors to the country grew by more than five per cent to more than two million. The number of departing visitors increased by eight per cent to 2.428.5 thousand.

The largest share of the visitors, accounting for 47.8 per cent, came on holiday. Hotel bed-nights occupancy increased by 12.6 per cent to 11,556.2 thousand in 2025, with a share of 45 per cent being occupied by Kenyan residents.

The ICT sector output value grew by 3.8 per cent to Sh728.2 billion in 2025. Mobile subscriptions increased from 71.4 million in 2024 to 78.4 million in 2025, driving up penetration from 136.14 in 2024 to 146.99 per 100 inhabitants.

In education, the total amount of loans granted to students by the Higher Education Loans Board increased by 32.1 per cent to Sh62.0 billion. The amount of loans granted under the New Funding Model increased by 69.7 per cent to Sh53.1 billion.

Government expenditure on health services increased, with national and county governments spending growing to Sh150.9 billion and Sh133.4 billion, respectively.

This investment supported the expansion in health infrastructure, increasing the number of health facilities to 16.7 thousand, hospital beds to 106.3 thousand, and cots to 12.2 thousand in 2025.

Over the same period, the health workforce expanded, leading to improved delivery of health services.

Effective governance underpins economic progress by creating a stable, just, and predictable environment in which people, businesses, and institutions can thrive. Crimes reported to the police dropped by 5.1 per cent to 96,038.

During the review period, the Central Bank rate was revised downward from 11.25 per cent in December 2024 to nine per cent in December 2025. Similarly, lending interest rates for loans and advances decreased from 16.89 per cent in December 2024 to 14.82 per cent in December 2025.