Farmers demand trimming of tea boards in light of reduced bonuses
Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Felix Koskei last week said Kenya had initiated talks with the European Union seeking ways of compensating the fresh produce exporters. FILE PHOTO | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- Kussto Rift Valley branch chair Joel Chepkwony attributed the bonus pay, which declined from between Sh24 to Sh35 last year to between Sh8.50 and Sh16 this year to an unnecessarily bloated KTDA board.
- Different tea factories gave various bonus rates to their farmers.
- Also dissolved were Kenya Sugar Board, Coffee and Pyrethrum Boards of Kenya, and the Horticultural Crops Development Authority.
Tea farmers in Kericho County are up in arms over what they have said are “excessively low” bonus payments this year by the Kenya Tea Development Authority (KTDA).
The Kenya Union of Small-Scale Tea Owners (Kussto) Rift Valley branch chair Joel Chepkwony attributed the bonus pay, which declined from between Sh24 to Sh35 last year to between Sh8.50 and Sh16 this year to an unnecessarily bloated KTDA board. He likened the directors to “parasites”, noting that the 448 directors who manage the 67 KTDA factories across the country collectively take home tens of millions of shillings in allowances each year, even as farmers continue to receive low payments.
“Must we have seven directors in each of the KTDA factories? That is a huge burden to farmers who pay each of the directors close to Sh1 million each year. We do not need all of them,” he said.
TRIM NUMBER OF DIRECTORS
Mr Chepkwony urged Agriculture Secretary Felix Kosgey to trim the number of directors in each factory to two, noting that this would reduce the cost of running factories so more money can go towards paying farmers.
Mr Chepkwony demanded an explanation from the South Rift KTDA directors over the reduced bonuses, especially since the farmers expected to get higher bonuses as they had been deprived of annual half-year bonuses supposedly owing to poor tea sales at the Mombasa Tea Auction.
“We want investigations so farmers can understand what is happening. What deductions are being made on our green tea? Why are they being made?” he said.
Different tea factories gave various bonus rates to their farmers. Chemamul Factory paid the highest bonus at Sh15.85 per kilo of green tea, Kapkatet and Tegat factories paid Sh14, and Litein Tea Factory paid Sh12. Even then, the unionist was full of praise for Mr Kosgey for disbanding the Tea Board of Kenya in favour of a tea directorate, which he amalgamated into the new Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Authority.
“We congratulate the minister for taking that bold step we are certain will go a long way in saving more money for tea farmers who were being taxed to fund the operations of the tea board,” he added.
Also dissolved were Kenya Sugar Board, Coffee and Pyrethrum Boards of Kenya, and the Horticultural Crops Development Authority.
