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{
    "id": 786379,
    "url": "http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/786379/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 260,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "(Prof.) Ongeri",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 124,
        "legal_name": "Samson Kegeo Ongeri",
        "slug": "samson-ongeri"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Madam Temporary Speaker. I stand to add my voice and second this Motion on the Establishment of an Ad Hoc Committee to look in to the affairs of tea industry. Such an important and crucial industry has languished in difficulties and frustrations because the returns that a farmer obtains from tea are paltry. Sen. Aaron Cheruiyot has already enumerated the enormous support that the tea industry contributes to our Gross Domestic Product (GDP). A contribution of 4 per cent of the GDP is not mean. If you look at it as a stand-alone element in the area of the agricultural produce, that contribution goes up to 26 per cent. If you look at the contribution of foreign exchange earnings from the tea industry alone, it goes up to 67 per cent of the earning of the hard foreign cash, which goes to sustain our Central Bank in terms of foreign exchange reserves. Who does that? It is the 600,000 small-scale farmers. What are the investments? It is only fair at this stage that I declare my interest that I am a tea farmer. Therefore, I should not be judged that I am being punitive because I am a tea farmer. What are the problems incurred by this small-scale farmer? The small-scale farmer has to till land but the fuel costs have gone up. After planting, it takes two or three years for you to start picking tea. There is also the question of fertilisers. You will also realise that the cost of fertilisers has gone up exponentially. Therefore, the farmer is at the mercy of those who produce fertilisers. Fortunately, a tea crop is not one of those crops that require applying agro-chemicals because it is pesticide free. Therefore, those who enjoy the end product enjoy the fragrance, beauty and aroma of the Kenyan tea. The farmer gets nothing in return. A farmer can pick tea for two or three years before he prunes to get another established crop. The cost of pruning has also gone up. It used to cost Kshs1 to prune a stem but the cost has gone up in some areas up to Kshs6, Kshs7 or Kshs8. Does a farmer get a corresponding price increase? The answer is no. So, the farmer remains stagnant and a very frustrated person. Recently they brought some subsidized fertilisers. Sometimes the fertilisers that come are of questionable quality because you apply fertiliser on tea crops and it just dampens the production. You do not get the kind of shootings that you would expect to get. The requirement is that you pick a leaf and a bud but multinational companies use machines that cut everything. Use of machines denies people employment opportunities. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}