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{
"id": 977165,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/977165/?format=api",
"text_counter": 293,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Mukurweini, JP",
"speaker_title": "Hon. Anthony Kiai",
"speaker": {
"id": 13439,
"legal_name": "Anthony Githiaka Kiai",
"slug": "anthony-githiaka-kiai"
},
"content": "place, Mukurweini. But after the collapse of coffee farming, things have really changed, which has generated a lot of poverty to our people in the Mt. Kenya region. In any country, especially a country like Kenya where agriculture is the mainstay, a lot of money should be allocated to research. When we created AFA about 2014, all the research foundations on tea coffee and others were brought under one roof? The Coffee Research Institute became a directorate under the Ministry as opposed to when it was being governed by an Act of Parliament. Research and development, in many places, is given a lot of emphasis. In Kenya, looking at the Report, you realise that the Coffee Research Institute has not been receiving any money whatsoever since 2014. Indeed, in 2010 it had requested for about Ksh372 million but it got only Ksh43 million. From 2014 to 2019, it has not received a single cent for its research and development activities. If we kill the Coffee Research Institute, what are we doing to the coffee farming? We are saying that no new breeds of coffee are being generated and coffee farming stopped about 10 years ago. What most of the farmers are growing today may be obsolete. I remember Ruiru 11 used to be a hit with many farmers in our place. When they wanted to buy seedlings from the Coffee Research Institute, the availability of the seedlings was a huge challenge. This is because once we underfund the Coffee Research Institute, which has a demand of about 1.5 million seedlings in so far as Ruiru and Batian seedlings are concerned, and is only producing about 100,000 of breed that was produced about 10 years ago, then we have a problem. Coffee production generally must emphasise how many kilogrammes can be produced per coffee bush. This has been declining over the years because we are not coming up with new methods, with new seedlings or new chemicals to ensure that we raise production. Aging is also a factor. The coffee bushes that were planted those days when I was going to school are still being pruned and trying to push them to produce even more is not possible. Acidity of the soil is also one of the factors. The Coffee Research Institute in its mandate was supposed to do certification of seedlings; it was supposed to supply coffee seedlings and it was supposed to advise farmers. I remember as kids we were being taken to the Coffee Research Institute in Ruiru to learn about coffee farming. It used to offer a lot of education on coffee farming. This is because we used to have a levy of about 1 per cent that was charged on every kilogramme of coffee delivered to factories to maintain it and sustain coffee farming. After it was collapsed into AFA, it has not received a single cent to run its research and development department. That means since 2014, coffee, in terms of research, has stopped and, therefore, the country cannot be competitive in the coffee market. Our Grade AA which is produced widely in Kenya is one of the best in the world and it is used for blending coffee. There are other low-quality coffee varieties from all over the world. We are the best producers of Grades AA, AB and C which are best used in blending coffee because of its strong aroma. Then again, if you are not researching on our gold, who will do it? Others are doing it and therefore, we would be overtaken. Indeed, some of the countries are almost overtaking us. If you are not going to fund the Coffee Research Institute, then it means that production will go down and less shillings are getting into the farmers’ pocket. It becomes very unattractive and once it is so, as a prudent businessperson or farmer, you will look for an alternative. You will ensure that you put food on the table by looking for other lucrative crops like Macadamia and Avocado. The shrinking land under which coffee is farmed is also another factor. We have to look at the land policy in this country. There is no way a place like Kiambu which has rich fertile soils The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposes only. Acertified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}