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{
    "id": 1355274,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1355274/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 48,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Tigania West, UDA",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. (Dr) John K. Mutunga",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "The Member also sought to be provided with data on the country's current and projected sugar production vis-a-vis domestic demand that formed the basis upon which the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development advised the Ministry of National Treasury and Economic Planning to authorise the importation of duty-free sugar. The response is as follows. Kenya has been experiencing a deficit in sugar production. Over the years, the country has relied on the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) sugar supplies under the Sugar Safeguard arrangement to meet the deficit. The annual national consumption of sugar is estimated at 1,140,000 metric tonnes. This comprises of about 980,000 metric tonnes of mill brown/white sugar and an estimated 160,000 metric tonnes of white refined sugar. The sugar industry is currently facing an acute cane shortage across all zones, with the exception of the Trans Mara catchment area. Some factories have been milling immature sugar- cane with as low as 8 per cent sucrose content as compared with the industry standard of 13.5 per cent sucrose content. The projected production for the period from January to September 2023 was 450,000 metric tonnes. The actual amount of sugar produced during that period was 373,000 metric tonnes. The Ministry observed the following: 1. Local sugar production has drastically reduced and this is attributed to lack of adequate mature cane. Factories within the Western and Nyando regions have closed down to allow sugar-cane in the fields to mature. 2. Sugar prices have risen to unprecedented levels, which are beyond the reach of ordinary citizens. Prices have also gone up regionally due to limited production and export by major producers. Those factors have resulted in delays in shipment of approved sugar imports. 3. The depreciation of the Kenya Shilling against the US Dollar and the introduction of an Excise Duty of Ksh5 per kilo on imported sugar have pushed up sugar prices as the added costs are transferred to the consumer. 4. Sugar supplies from the COMESA and East African Community (EAC) regions are very low. Some COMESA countries have opted to supply sugar to premium European markets, which are also experiencing a supply crunch. In view of the foregoing, and given the depressed sugar supplies from the COMESA region and the prevailing sugar shortage in the country, the Government decided to allow imports of brown table sugar from outside the COMESA region in order to make the commodity available to consumers at reasonable prices. The Member also wanted an explanation on the measures that the Government has put in place to ensure that contraband and contaminated sugar does not infiltrate the market during the period of importation of sugar. The response is as follows: 1. Regulation of sugar importation. This is done by implementing the Crops (Sugar) (Imports, Exports and By-Products) Regulations, 2020. All sugar importers are vetted and subjected to a pre-import evaluation procedure as detailed below: (a) Application for registration and issuance of import/export permits is received through the Agriculture and Food Authority Integrated Financial Management Information System (AFA-IFMIS), which is the system used by that particular Authority. (b) Evaluation of the application is undertaken and approved through the following stages: Checking, Verification, Sugar Directorate, Licensing Committee and AFA Registration, and Licensing Committees. The evaluation is based on the submission of the following requirements: (i) Profile of the applicant company; The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}