President William Ruto has intensified his administration's push to win over coffee farmers in the vote-rich Mt Kenya region, citing rising farm-gate prices and sweeping sector reforms as evidence that his government is delivering on promises to revive one of Kenya's most important cash crops.
Speaking during the launch of the National Coffee Revival Through Cooperative Societies Programme in Kianyaga, Kirinyaga County, President Ruto said reforms undertaken over the last two years have significantly improved returns to farmers and restored confidence in a sector that had suffered decades of decline.
The President said coffee prices have risen from between Sh30 and Sh70 per kilogramme before his administration took office to between Sh120 and Sh160 currently, attributing the gains to reforms aimed at strengthening cooperatives, improving market access and protecting farmers from exploitation.
"We are reforming the coffee sector to put more money in the pockets of our farmers," President Ruto said.
He added that the government was implementing measures to ensure that at least 80 per cent of coffee sales proceeds go directly to farmers, with payments being processed within five days after a sale.
The announcement comes at a politically significant time as the Kenya Kwanza administration seeks to consolidate support in the Mt Kenya region, where coffee farming remains a major economic activity and a key political issue.
Battle for Mt Kenya
The revival of the coffee sector has increasingly become a centrepiece of President Ruto's economic and political messaging in Central Kenya, a region that played a critical role in his election victory but has recently witnessed growing political competition.
By highlighting improvements in coffee earnings, the President appears keen to demonstrate tangible benefits of his administration's Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda to farming communities that have long complained about low prices, delayed payments and mismanagement of cooperative societies.
Political analysts say the focus on coffee is designed not only to improve livelihoods but also to reinforce the government's standing in a region that is expected to play a decisive role in future electoral contests.
Beyond prices, the President announced a package of interventions intended to boost production and lower farming costs.
These include the provision of subsidised fertiliser, distribution of quality coffee seedlings, expansion of agricultural extension services and the promotion of modern farming methods aimed at increasing yields.
The government also plans to expand acreage under coffee cultivation as part of a broader strategy to increase national production and enhance export earnings.
Agriculture experts have previously argued that improving productivity remains critical if farmers are to fully benefit from higher global coffee prices.
Shift to value addition
A major pillar of the government's strategy is the move away from exporting raw coffee beans towards local processing, packaging and branding.
President Ruto said Kenya has for decades exported raw produce while allowing foreign companies to earn the largest share of profits through processing and marketing.
The new strategy seeks to retain more value within the country, create employment opportunities and increase farmers' earnings.
"We are moving away from export of raw coffee to local processing, packaging and branding so that more value is retained in Kenya, more jobs are created in the country and our farmers earn more from the crop they produce," the President said.
The push aligns with broader government efforts to promote manufacturing and agro-processing as part of Kenya's industrialisation agenda.
Opposition scepticism
Despite the government's optimism, some critics have urged caution, arguing that long-term success will depend on sustained implementation rather than policy announcements.
Opposition leaders and governance advocates have previously maintained that reforms in the coffee sector must be accompanied by stronger accountability mechanisms within cooperative societies and greater transparency in the management of farmers' funds.
Others argue that while prices have improved, farmers continue to face challenges including rising production costs, climate change effects and access to affordable credit.
The coffee sector remains one of the most politically sensitive agricultural industries in Kenya, particularly in the Mt Kenya region where hundreds of thousands of households depend on the crop either directly or indirectly.
Historically, governments have been judged by their ability to improve returns for coffee farmers, making the sector a key battleground for political influence.
