Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mithika Linturi has revealed that the government is planning to provide an array of incentives to bolster tea value addition in the country.
The CS said on Thursday that the government through the Tea Board of Kenya has already developed a concept note that will guide the rollout of the ambitious plan.
The concept note which has been approved by the National Treasury proposes the establishment of a scheme aimed at unlocking the potential of Kenya tea by providing both tax and other incentives necessary to make local value addition more attractive.
"The Scheme will also entail the promotion of a Kenya tea brand and enhancement of orthodox tea manufacturing for smallholder tea factories," the CS said.
Speaking when he addressed directors from tea factories across the country, Linturi asked the leaders to support the incentives once they are made available.
"I urge KTDA managed tea factories to leverage on the incentives to upscale their manufacture of orthodox teas and value addition at factory level instead of continuing to do bulk tea sales," he said in Nairobi.
He urged smallholder tea factories to take advantage of the existing global market opportunities for Orthodox teas, which is currently not saturated compared to the CTC market.
This, he said, would enhance earnings for the smallholder tea farmers.
"I am happy to note that most KTDA-managed factories have been diversifying to orthodox tea manufacture," he added.
The CS noted that the government through the Tea Board of Kenya will not only grant KTDA-managed factories the licences to manufacture orthodox teas but will also enhance its promotional activities to unlock market access.
"I urge KTDA to continue to harness the opportunities presented by the AfCFTA currently under the guided initiative with ECOWAS where there are fifteen member countries with whom they can enjoy preferential negotiated tariffs,'' he said.
The government has been undertaking various reforms in the sub-sector which culminated in the enactment of the Tea Act, 2020 that came into effect on 11th January 2021.
Amongst the key provisions is the establishment of the Tea Board of Kenya which is expected to provide effective regulation, development and promotion of the tea industry in Kenya.
Talking about KTDA's impeding elections next year, Linturi asked them to utilise guidelines published by the Tea Board of Kenya to facilitate smooth elections for the factory’s directors.
"I implore you to utilize these guidelines in conducting your elections next year to ensure that the elections are credible and there is stability in those tea factories," he said.
The CS noted that the government will play an observer role to ensure that the elections are conducted in accordance with the law.
He urged the directors to work with the Tea Board of Kenya and other stakeholders to explore alternative dispute resolution mechanisms to resolve outstanding issues related to court cases by former directors.
"I am sure that you all share the same objective with the government of revitalizing the tea industry for the betterment of the lives of tea farmers and other tea industry stakeholders," he said.
He regretted that the court cases by former directors, ex-KTDA management and some smallholder tea factories have partly hampered the implementation of the provisions of the Tea Act passed in 2020.
"Sustainability of the tea sub-sector calls for collaboration and continuous consultations amongst the industry stakeholders," he said.
