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{
"id": 1472502,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1472502/?format=api",
"text_counter": 198,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Molo, UDA",
"speaker_title": "Hon. Kuria Kimani",
"speaker": null,
"content": "amendments. That will allow ways of ensuring guaranteed minimum returns and stabilisation of prices by using modern forms of hedging against fluctuating prices. Those ways include the use of futures and tokenisation where, with the current technology, it is possible for that coffee farmer in Kiambu, Murang'a, or elsewhere in the country, to put part of their coffee in the international market through tokenisation and get investment, returns and better prices for their coffee. I mean tokenisation or using other hedging features like futures, which we use in the money market or the other commodity markets. The high production cost is another challenge seen as a great hindrance to coffee farming. Again, the Bill proposes several amendments that will reduce the high cost of production of this crop. One of the greatest efforts the current administration has made is the introduction of stabilised fertiliser as one of the ways of subsidising coffee production. The subsequent amendments that we will see in this House, especially from the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning, will be to exempt duties and levies on other inputs such as pesticide control. That is so that we can reduce the cost of production of this product. The other factor raising the cost of coffee production has been a lack of access to the market and credit. We are happy that the Bill introduces a Farmer Stabilisation Fund to be available to coffee farmers at low interest rates. Therefore, in a way, this will hedge them against the high cost of production, especially the high cost of credit in this country. Aging coffee trees is also one of the reasons the coffee sector has been ailing. Now, establishing a research institution and a fund to fund that research institution will ensure that coffee trees or the coffee plants made available to our coffee farmers last longer and have higher yields. Therefore, tackling the other challenge is one of the challenges in the coffee sector. That is the aging of coffee trees. Poor corporate management in cooperatives of these coffee farmers has also been a thorn in the flesh of farmers. I am impressed that this Bill also seeks to address this challenge by having more stringent regulations on how these cooperatives run. Most farmers are only able to sell their coffee through their local cooperatives. When there is lack of proper corporate governance, these cooperatives have led to the collapse of this sector and very poor return on investment to farmers. By addressing poor corporate management by these cooperatives, the Bill will be a great source of relief to our coffee farmers. Pest and disease control has also greatly contributed to the challenges around the coffee sector. Again, the establishment of this research institute and proposed funding to it will lead to better, more environmentally friendly, and cheaper ways of pest and disease control so that farmers have longer-lasting trees and better-quality coffee that will give them maximum returns. Lastly, brokers and middlemen are also said to be a key challenge. The Bill proposes direct sales for export and licencing. Therefore, farmers will have a chance to sell directly to local and international markets, bypassing all those exploitative intermediaries in the coffee sector. Looking at what research has shown as challenges in the coffee sector and what this Bill has done, I am convinced this Bill, as passed by the Departmental Committee for Agriculture and Livestock, and as recommended in the detailed Report the Committee has done, is going to be the lifeline coffee farmers of this country have been looking forward to. Then, our people in coffee-growing areas can take their children to school, live a good life, take care of expenses, look at coffee as an investment, and not just think about uprooting the plants and selling off the land where coffee is planted. They are going to get a good turn on this investment. As I wind up, Jackie Chan once said that coffee is a language in itself. During this time, when there is a lot of political conversation around this country, this quote by Jackie Chan 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."
}