Kenya Eyes Coffee Revival as Nation Marks International Coffee Day 2025
Posted by JIM MWANDA
Kenya’s Coffee Comeback: How Reforms and Financing Are Reviving a Struggling Sector
Nairobi Kenya
In Summary
Kenya is pushing for a coffee comeback, aiming to raise production from the current 70,000 metric tonnes to 150,000 within three years through reforms, financing, and market expansion. Speaking at International Coffee Day in Nairobi, officials highlighted efforts such as distributing millions of seedlings, passing new cooperative laws, and boosting access to credit through the KSh 9 billion Cherry Fund and the Direct Settlement System. Alongside global promotions, the government is urging Kenyans to drink more of their own coffee, while New KPCU is modernising facilities, improving transparency, and empowering women and youth to secure the sector’s future.
Kenya is banking on reforms, farmer financing, and expanded markets to restore coffee production to its former glory, government officials said during International Coffee Day celebrations held in Nairobi yesterday.It was a moment to take stock of a sector that once defined rural livelihoods and foreign exchange earnings but later slipped into decline.
Speaking at the event hosted by the New Kenya Planters Cooperative Union (New KPCU), Principal Secretary for Cooperatives Patrick Kilemi said Kenya aims to raise production from the current 60,000–70,000 metric tonnes to 150,000 tonnes within three years.
Ps for co-operatives Patrick kilemi addressing
“From peaks of 150,000 tonnes in the 1970s and 1990s, our sector collapsed to 30,000 tonnes. We are now on the rebound,” he said, crediting reforms under President William Ruto’s administration.
Farmers, he noted, were discouraged by poor value transmission, with little of the market price trickling back to them.
Today, the government is targeting a return to peak levels within three years, with production already climbing toward 70,000 tonnes.
Key reforms include:
- Expansion of coffee-growing areas, with millions of seedlings distributed across new counties.
- Strengthening of financing through the Cherry Advance Revolving Fund, now valued at over KSh 9 billion, benefiting nearly 600,000 farmers.
- Rollout of the Direct Settlement System (DSS) to enhance transparency and improve farmers’ access to credit.
- Passage of the Coffee Bill 2024 and Cooperative Bill 2024, expected to overhaul governance in cooperatives.
One of the most notable strategies has been geographical diversification. The government has held more than 55 certification meetings across new coffee-growing counties, backed by millions of seedlings distributed with World Bank support. Kilemi described this as “horizontal growth” — introducing new farmers to the value chain — complemented by “vertical growth” through improved yields on existing bushes.With proper agronomy, a bush can produce 40–50 kilograms, compared to the current national average of less than two.
To support this, millions of seedlings have been distributed across new counties, backed by the World Bank and the State Department of Agriculture.
Institutional reforms are underway through the Coffee Bill 2024 and Cooperative Bill 2024, designed to curb mismanagement and strengthen cooperative democracy.
On the financial side, the Cherry Advance Revolving Fund has scaled from KSh 20 million to KSh 9 billion in three years, easing farmers’ dependence on predatory lenders. Nearly 600,000 farmers have accessed the facility. The Direct Settlement System (DSS) further boosts transparency and allows coffee payments to be used as collateral.
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Kilemi urged Kenyans to build a stronger domestic coffee culture, echoing Ethiopia’s example, where more than half of the crop is consumed locally. At the same time, Kenya is diversifying exports, with promotions held in China, India, Korea, Russia, Brazil, Berlin, and Rome.
Managing Director Timothy Mirugi positioned New KPCU as a driver of inclusivity, farmer empowerment, and transparency. The union is modernising milling, strengthening traceability, and ensuring fair credit access.
“We are deliberately opening doors for women and youth to participate meaningfully in the coffee value chain,” he said.
He pledged support through modern milling, traceability systems, and inclusivity.
“Coffee is a chain, and every link matters. Without collaboration, there is no progress,” he said.
Mirugi added that New KPCU will make International Coffee Day a signature annual event to unite stakeholders around quality, sustainability, and farmer empowerment.
