The Kenyan coffee sector is once again in turmoil as fresh government levies threaten to undercut farmers’ earnings, just as they were anticipating better prices for their produce.
Githunguri MP Gathoni Wamuchomba has sounded the alarm, accusing the government of sneaking in new deductions targeting coffee brokers and farmers despite Parliament rejecting similar proposals late last year.
As reported on March 21, 2025, the National Treasury, through a gazette notice issued by Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi on December 23, 2024, imposed a 1.8% transaction fee on every coffee trade at the Nairobi Coffee Exchange (NCE).
This includes a 1% broker fee, 0.3% coffee exchange fee, 0.3% Direct Settlement System (DSS) provider fee, and 0.2% Capital Markets Authority statutory fee. Additionally, annual membership fees for brokers and other key players in the sector have been raised, with some now required to pay up to KSh 115,000.
Wamuchomba has termed the levies unconstitutional, questioning their legality since Parliament was on recess when they were gazetted.
“This regulation is irregular and unconstitutional and must be nullified in Parliament,” she stated, calling on fellow MPs and Senators to oppose what she described as a “blatant act of greed.”
By Kenyans