After tea, reform coffee, pyrethrum farming

Away from the gloom brought about by the outbreak of the deadly coronavirus pandemic, the State has announced reforms that will transform the tea sector.

The reforms, which borrow heavily from the task force that was chaired by Kagiri Kamatu, are timely. The team, which was appointed by President Uhuru Kenyatta to look into ways of improving tea farmers’ earnings, made proposals that included restructuring the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) and reviewing its contracts with farmers, reduction of levies and establishment of a regulator for the industry.