The distinction of Coffee Advance Revolving Fund

Barely two weeks ago, the Ministry of Finance gazetted the much awaited regulations to operationalise the access of the promised Coffee Cherry Advance Revolving Fund by the coffee farmers. The funds had been delayed for over a year since the president pledged the Sh3 billion that would help facilitate in reducing the cost of coffee production especially among small-scale farmers.

The coffee sector in Kenya have been in a crisis since 1990s with more than 40 percent decline in coffee production to the current range of below 50,000 tonnes. This has minted considerable poverty to many farmers to a point that many have abandoned coffee farming for its huge investment risks. Those who persisted in hope of future better returns have had to contend with poor living income to support their families.