DR WAIRURI: Coffee reforms welcome; but more remains to be done

Harvested coffee. Cartels often regroup and find ways to frustrate reforms or invalidate them in clever ways.

Despite Kenyan coffee being loved across the world, we have lost our competitiveness globally over the last few decades due to the neglect and mismanagement of the sector. Sadly, people who do not produce coffee have been making the most out of the crop. The farmers are paid a pittance for their labour and are also burdened by the debts accrued by their cooperative societies. Despite these challenges, coffee retains great prominence as a crop that can still help to transform rural livelihoods.

Over the years, farmers have uprooted many coffee bushes due to farmer frustration. However, we are still producing significant quantities of coffee. For instance, in my home district of Kangema, the nearly 70-year-old Iyego Coffee Cooperative Society produces over 3 million kilograms of coffee yearly. At a good price, the proceeds from this crop would be a good injection to the economy of the rural district every year. Beyond the direct income to farmers, the value addition along the value chain is a catalyst for job creation and other economic benefits.

With the new coffee law, it seems we have come back full circle. It will not be lost to many of us that the Coffee Board of Kenya, which is proposed by the new law, is a reincarnation of the old institution established in colonial times and sustained in post-colonial Kenya. Like other marketing boards in Kenya and elsewhere in Africa, the former Coffee Board of Kenya was riddled with inefficiency, exploitation of farmers, poor pricing, corruption and political interference.

Interestingly, the consolidation of the coffee board into the Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) was itself promoted as reforms to address the problems that have bedevilled the sector. That these problems, especially the destructive practices by cartels, have persisted and, in some cases, worsened, shows the significance of considering the unintended consequences of policy reform. Importantly, it highlights that merely because the same action is termed as reform does not mean that it will automatically bring positive change. The reforms have to be implemented carefully and diligently if they are to generate the intended outcomes.

For one thing, it is critical to acknowledge that, ultimately, institutions are staffed by people. Stakeholders who are committed to these reforms must remain vigilant as the stewards of these reforms, as selected and appointed. We have seen many cases where people who are anti-reform are appointed to oversee such critical transitions, making a mockery of the process.

For another thing, cartels do not supply rollover and let reforms happen. Often, they regroup and find ways to frustrate reforms or invalidate them in clever ways, for instance, by exploiting loopholes. This is particularly true for mature value chains, such as coffee, where some of the actors have built deep networks and infrastructure to maintain their advantage in the marketplace. The old adage goes that eternal vigilance is the price of freedom. Similarly, for the coffee farmer to get their due, our eyes and ears must remain wide open.

Most crucially, we must be careful that these new reforms do not destroy the cooperative movement. For all their flaws, which must be addressed, cooperatives are a crucial and powerful technology for supporting farmers. They are an important way for farmers to build collective power at the grassroots that they can employ to engage more powerful actors. If cooperatives collapse, under the guise of reforms, farmers are left without protection.

Be that as it may, we also must state loudly that the work of the government does not end with the institutionalisation of this new governance regime. The government must also keep its promise of keeping production costs low.  A return to the coffee “golden era” will require sustainably subsidised high-quality fertilisers and the provision of extension services. Deployment of digital technology, which is necessary but costly, also needs to be facilitated by the government, especially as markets increasingly demand traceability of agricultural produce.

This is to say that even as we command the key actors who have driven these reforms, we must roll up our sleeves and work to sustain this momentum until farmers get a fair reward for their work

Dr Wairuri is a scholar of public policy and the political economy of development in Africa