CS Kagwe roots for revival of fibre crops

The Agriculture and Livestock Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe during a consultative meeting with the tea producers, buyers and brokers at East African Tea Traders (EATTA) auditorium in Mombasa County on Thursday 13th March 2025. [File, Standard] Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe has now called for revival of Kenya's cotton and sisal industries by making the Draft Crops (Fibre Crops and Crop Fibres) Regulations, 2025 operational. Kagwe, who appeared before the National Assembly Committee on Delegated Legislation, said the regulations will be critical in unlocking the full potential of fibre crops and ensuring sustainable growth of this vital industry. At the same time, he said the new framework will streamline production, processing, and marketing of fibre crops, promote value addition, regulate imports, and strengthen competitiveness in both local and global markets. "Under the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA), cotton is targeted to contribute significantly to poverty reduction, job creation, and economic growth. The fibre crops sector can transform communities if we provide the right legal and institutional support," Kagwe said. Statistics show that Kenya currently grows cotton in 21 counties and sisal in 11, with other crops such as jute, flax, kenaf, banana, pineapple, rice, and coconut also presenting fibre potential. Last year, cotton covered 16,477 hectares, producing 11,268 bales of lint against a national demand of 48,000 bales, leaving the country dependent on imports from Uganda and Tanzania. As far as sisal is concerned, Kenya is ranked as the third-largest global producer after Brazil and Tanzania, with large estates and smallholder farmers producing over 30,000 metric tonnes of fibre in 2024 and an export of about 95 per cent. But Kagwe noted that the sector is weighed down by challenges, including competition from synthetic fibres, aging technology, weak farmer organisations, low financing, and influx of cheap imports. According to Kagwe, the Draft Regulations are designed to address these gaps by enhancing coordination across the value chain, supporting farmer institutions, and anchoring fibre crops firmly within Kenya's industrialization strategy. The regulations state that a licensing authority may revoke a certificate, license or permit issued in accordance with these Regulations if the holder fails to meet the conditions imposed on the certificate, license or permit or if a certificate of compliance is cancelled or withdrawn. If the certificate of compliance is revoked, the license issued shall stand cancelled. However, the licensing authority shall not revoke a certificate, license or permit unless a notice of at least 14 days of the intention to revoke is given. "If a certificate, license, or permit is revoked, the holder shall immediately surrender it to the licensing authority and shall cease to have effect from the date of its revocation. A holder of a certificate, license, or permit that has been revoked shall be allowed to be heard on the revocation," the regulations provide. A person who contravenes any provision of the Regulations, or commits an offence for which no penalty is prescribed, will be liable, on conviction, to a fine not exceeding Sh500,000, or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding one year, or to both. The regulations also state that a person who is not registered and licensed in accordance with the Act and the Regulations should not manufacture, buy, sell, transport, offer for sale, or possess fibre produce or fibre product. "A person who contravenes sub-regulation 29(1) commits an offence and shall be liable, on conviction, to a fine not exceeding Sh10 million, or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years, or both," it states. The Committee is expected to table its report in Parliament in the coming weeks, to pave way for possible enactment and subsequent implementation of the regulations.

CS Kagwe roots for revival of fibre crops

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