Billions of shillings meant to revive coffee farming in the country are lying idle in banks.
According to the Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya, majority of farmers have failed to borrow money from the Cherry Advance Revolving Fund, frustrating the government’s effort to revive the ailing sub-sector.
Speaking at Kathakwa Coffee Factory in Embu County, Mr Munya accused officials of growers’ societies of refusing to enlighten farmers on the need to borrow the money which has a low interest rate of three per cent.
“We have Sh3 billion cherry advance revolving fund in the banks but farmers are not applying for it. The (societies’) officials are to blame,” he lamented.
The CS pleaded with farmers to fill application forms and submit them to the New Kenya Planters Cooperative Union so that they can get cash for inputs and harvesting their coffee.
Filling forms
But some cooperatives in Nyeri are being forced to pay youths to fill the application forms on behalf of the farmers, citing complexity and bulkiness.
“The filling of forms is taking too long to complete and nine pages are too much for an average farmer. We are paying Sh400 for each form to be filled in a process taking over two weeks, to cover all the farmers,” said Mr Charles Karinga, the chairman of Kiawamururu factory CBO.
On the other hand, Othaya Cooperative chairman James Gathua said the government should set up an easy and efficient system that will speed up the application of the money for each farmer.
“They better revise it and find an easy way to remit the funds to the farmers,” he said.
CS Munya threatened to have cooperative society managements, whose officials are frustrating farmers, dissolved.
“The officials should furnish farmers with loan application forms or else they will face my wrath,” he said.
Revive coffee farming
Mr Munya said the government is determined to revive coffee farming at whatever cost.
“We are investing heavily in the coffee sector so that farmers can have better returns to be able to eke out a living,” he added.
Mr Munya accused the society officials of misleading the farmers to borrow loans in banks and private millers where they have personal interests.
He noted that the banks and millers advance farmers loans at very high interest rates and this makes it impossible for them to pay up or make profits.
“What is happening in cooperatives is unacceptable. Farmers should go for the cherry fund whose interest is friendly,” said Mr Munya.
On the other hand, farmers in Nyeri claim the Sh20 advance payment per kilogramme of coffee is too little and that the government should increase it to Sh30 per kilogramme to ensure that farmers manage to cultivate their farms after picking season is over.
“They should increase the money to Sh30 while maintaining the same interest so that farmers can do more,” noted Mr Gathua.
New KPCU Chairman Henry Kinyua said that farmers are reluctant to borrow the money due to lack of sufficient sensitisation caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and initial court cases, lack of cooperation by leaders of coffee cooperatives, misunderstanding that farmers must belong to the New KPCU and low production.
“This season’s production was significantly low and farmers are opting to have the coffee they harvested sold before they can start borrowing,” he said.
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