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{
    "id": 980074,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/980074/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 320,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Mogotio, JP",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Daniel Tuitoek",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13434,
        "legal_name": "Daniel Kamuren Tuitoek",
        "slug": "daniel-kamuren-tuitoek"
    },
    "content": "Hon. Deputy Speaker, in recent years, we re-organised the management of tea in this country. We vested AFA with the responsibility to manage crops like tea. We did away with the Tea Board of Kenya (TBK), which used to manage this industry. We have major players in the industry such as private farmers and companies as well as public farmers coordinated through KTDA. In recent years, the management of KTDA has been having serious issues. They overcharge the farmers through management and consultancy fees. The fees have reduced the livelihood of the farmers by way of receiving less for tea delivery. When we visited Konoin, Kericho, the farmers were not happy with KTDA. This Bill has tried to cure the representation problem; the way the directors are elected and the role they play in particular factories. We have several mother factories that have sister factories. Those directors tend to overwrap and benefit from managing the two factories. In this Bill, we are trying to cure the representation so that it can become more efficient. Hon. Deputy Speaker, another aspect that this Bill is addressing is the issue of research in tea. As I said earlier, we have various varieties of tea. I know we mainly know of the black tea, but the other varieties are coming up. We have the green, purple, and all the tea which has been researched on in Kericho Research Tea Foundation. The foundation has been somehow private, but the Government has been trying to use it to come up with new varieties. We need to invest in this area. In this Bill, we have tried to vest TBK with the responsibility of investing more in research. We have given them power to see to it that they come up with different varieties which can attract more returns for the farmer. For example, we do not consume the green tea here but in a country like China, the tea is consumed in large quantities. Therefore, if we are able to export to China, although it also produces tea, probably the farmers will get more returns for their tea instead of what they get from black tea. Hon. Deputy Speaker, in this Bill, we are saying that we should revive the TBK in order to coordinate the management in the country. The KTDA also needs to be restructured. The President directed that we look into the fees which are being charged by KTDA with a view to ensure that payments to farmers become better. In other words, the first payment, which is on delivery of green tea, should be better. Currently, tea costs Kshs16 per kilogramme. This should be improved to Kshs25 so that farmers can maintain a livelihood at the end of the month. In conclusion, value addition is an area we need to address. We consume very little tea. We only consume 5 per cent of what we produce in this country. Most of it is for export but we need to encourage value addition on tea. We will see whether we can sell tea while it is already packaged, so that we can earn more and farmers can benefit. With those few remarks, I support."
}