Ministry considers fertiliser subsidy plan for tea farmers

A farmer picks tea leaves at her farm at Gathuthi village in Nyeri county on September 16, 2013. The government is considering subsidising fertilisers for tea farmers as part of measures to cushion the business from collapse. PHOTO | JOSEPH KANYI | FILE

What you need to know:

  • The subsidy will be part of the government’s seed and fertiliser development fund with an initial investment of Sh3 billion. The fund is expected to rise to about Sh15 billion over the next five years to support the programme while the establishment a fertiliser plant in the country is also underway.

The government is considering subsidising fertilisers for tea farmers as part of measures to cushion the business from collapse.

Agriculture Principal Secretary Sicily Kariuki said the current subsidy plan will be extended to include top dressing fertilisers for tea crop.

The programme has to date been restricted to maize and targets about 24 food-insecure counties.

“We are working on a budget,” Ms Kariuki told the Nation in a telephone interview. Kenya Tea Development Authority officials confirmed that the talks were ongoing.

“We are currently in discussions with the Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture for government subsidy,” KTDA director for finance and strategy Benson Ngari noted.

The subsidy will be part of the government’s seed and fertiliser development fund with an initial investment of Sh3 billion. The fund is expected to rise to about Sh15 billion over the next five years to support the programme while the establishment a fertiliser plant in the country is also underway.

Current tea prices have dipped to a record six-year low with farmers demanding that the government steps in to bail them out.

The low returns have seen some factories fail to declare second payment (bonus) for the produce this season prompting some farmers to contemplate shifting to other high-yielding ventures on their farms.