The Deputy President will be joining other coffee producers and stakeholders for the Global Coffee Producers and Roasters Forum in Bogota, Colombia. The main purpose of his attendance to this forum is to initiate discussions of partnership with stakeholders in the global markets and a benchmarking project. The Deputy President will be meeting the stakeholders in a bit to eliminate the middlemen who have been benefiting more from the sale of Kenyan coffee more than the Kenyan farmer.

H.E Deputy President Rigathi has on numerous occasions insisted that the Kenyan farmer should be able to live comfortably, earning a living wage, from farming and farming activities.

For years, the markets for Kenyan products have been limited which has continuously left the farmers vulnerable to losses brought about by geopolitical instabilities, intercontinental wrangles, recently, the pandemic and lockdowns, and much more.

In Columbia, the Deputy President will be heavily invested in making new partnerships to extend trade territories, learning about the best practices for coffee farming while also ensuring to solve the problem of middlemen.

After this Summit, the DP will be visiting Iran and Pakistan as prospective tea buyers.

Finding new markets for the country’s exports is bound to benefit farmers in several ways.

  1. Competitive Prices.

With more buyers of the country’s agricultural products, farmers will be assured of best possible prices for their products. Be it tea, coffee or dairy products, an excess of markets for these products will protect the farmers from exploitation from few buyers who may take advantage to buy at low prices as the farmers seek to sell all their products.

  • Increased Earnings.

Diversification of the markets will protect farmers from losses incurred when the supply does not meet the demand. With fewer buyers, Kenyans farmers are bound to be make very huge losses when they produce more they can sell. One of the biggest deterrent of exploring agriculture amongst the youth has been the huge losses incurred from lack of markets.

With more global partnerships and markets, the supply will meet the demand, giving the farmers the return on investment they desire.

  • Increased Revenue for the Country.

President Ruto has previously mentioned that Kenya has enough resources to cater for her own people with minimal reliance on foreign debt. With increased earnings, the revenue the government earns will increase significantly which will lead to an incredible economic boost.