The agriculture ministry has assured tea farmers across the country that the government will explore diplomatic avenues to address market access challenges in Iran and Sudan.
This comes after Sudan on Friday suspended all imports from Kenya indefinitely following a diplomatic rift that emerged last month after Kenya hosted the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF.
“The import of all products from Kenya via all ports, crossings, airports, and entry points is suspended starting from this date until further notice,” said a decree issued by Sudan’s Acting Minister of Trade and Supplies Omar Ahmed Mohamed Ali.
According to Agriculture and Livestock Development Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe, the government is now seeking diplomatic solution to the disagreement.
“That the Government will explore diplomatic avenues in order to address the market access challenges of Kenya in Iran and Sudan markets,” said Kagwe when he met tea stakeholders on Friday.
According to statistics from the Tea Board of Kenya (TBK), in a year to December 2024, Sudan was the 12th largest importer of Kenyan tea with 10.7 million kilograms in exports worth Ksh 2.3 billion.
In the meeting held with Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA), Kenya Tea Growers Association (KTGA), Independent Tea Producers (ITP), tea traders and Members of East African Tea Trade Association (EATTA) at the Tea Trade Centre, the ministry struck a twelve point agreement with the tea stakeholders in a bid to improve earnings among farmers and secure the country’s tea quality.
“In order to curb green leaf malpractices such as the tea hawking, all tea producers shall abide by the standard on minimum green leaf quality for Kenya tea. In this regard, the Ministry shall publish the green leaf quality standard for all tea producers in Kenya and the Tea Board of Kenya shall deregister any stakeholders engaging in tea hawking,” added Kagwe.
The agreements include among others, putting in place mechanisms of establishing a Tea Council to promote the common interest of all tea stakeholders in Kenya such as cooperation and collaboration along the tea value chain, fast track the appointment of representatives of large-scale tea growers and tea traders as members of the TBK and prioritize increasing returns to farmers.
