{"id":786367,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/786367/?format=json","text_counter":248,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Sen. Cheruiyot","speaker_title":"","speaker":{"id":13165,"legal_name":"Aaron Kipkirui Cheruiyot","slug":"aaron-cheruiyot"},"content":"Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I knew I would not escape your wrath. I apologise. Let me do the right thing. ESTABLISHMENT OF AN AD-HOC COMMITTEE TO INQUIRE INTO THE CHALLENGES FACING THE TEA SECTOR IN KENYA ` Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I beg to move the following Motion: THAT, AWARE that Kenya is the third leading producer of black tea in the world accounting for about 10 per cent of the total world tea production; COGNIZANT that tea contributes four per cent of Kenya’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 26 per cent of the country’s export earnings; FURTHER AWARE THAT the tea industry in Kenya supports close to six hundred thousand small scale farmers and provides direct or indirect employment to over two million Kenyans; REALIZING that despite tea being Kenya’s most important cash crop, the Kenyan tea farmers, who are mainly small scale farmers spread over fourteen counties, continue to receive a disproportionate return for the resources and time they put in tea production; FURTHER ACKNOWLEDGING that the sector continues to face numerous other challenges which require urgent intervention to ensure that this critical sector thrives for the benefit of our economy; 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."}