The coffee industry of Kenya received Ksh 1.5 billion, a concessional loan from the World Bank for improving the production and quality of the coffee in the country.
Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Cooperatives Peter Munya said the coffee revitalization program will improve the efficiency of farmer cooperative societies and support the development of alternative coffee markets.
The program targets 8 counties in phase one and it will involve training and supporting farmers with quality seeds, extension services, and improving storage, and sourcing of markets.
The counties are Tharaka Nithi, Kiambu, Machakos, Murang’a, Kirinyanga, Nyeri, Embu, and Meru. The counties produce 70 per cent of coffee in the country.
“The program will contribute and synergize with other interventions that the government is undertaking to revitalize the coffee industry such as review of legislation and establishment of the coffee cherry advance revolving fund,” Munya said.
The two-year program will be undertaken under the National Agricultural and Rural Inclusive Growth Project (NARIGP) and the Kenya Climate-Smart Agriculture Project (KCSAP).
Phase two of the project will expand into the other coffee-growing counties where lessons learned from the pilot regions will be up-scaled.
Kenya hopes to raise coffee production to 100,000 metric tonnes annually from the current 40,000 metric tonnes annually.
Kenya’s Treasury Gazettes Commodities Markets and Coffee Exchange Regulations
