Coffee farm**s to start accessing cheap loans
Small-scale coffee farmers will start receiving cheap loans to finance the crop farming before the end of this month under the Sh3 billion coffee advance revolving fund approved by the Cabinet last year.
But the release of the fund must be preceded by the Gazettement of Coffee Cherry Advance Fund Regulations, 2019 which are currently under the public participation process.
Industry, Trade and Co-operatives Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya said yesterday that the farmers would start receiving the funds in the next two weeks.
The fund is part of the new reforms Government is implementing to revive the dismal performing coffee industry.
“We expect small-scale farmers to start receiving the cheap loans within two weeks.
Equally, we expect to have concluded the process of the public participation of the fund regulations,” he said when he commissioned the new seven-member board appointed to manage the New Kenya Planters Co-operative Union (New KPCU) at the old KPCU buildings in Nairobi.
Henry Kinyua, a former county executive in charge of agriculture in Nyeri County government will chair the new board.
The board will oversee the administration of the fund as well as spearhead development of policies and procedures and applications, disbursement and recovery.
Munya said the rules were approved gazetted by Cabinet last month and are undergoing public participation
