This archive report was first published on 6 July 2020.
On June 24, the Agricultural and Food Authority (AFA) notified tea buyers at the Mombasa auction that they would be required to pay a performance bond, a provision in the proposed Crops (Tea Industry) Regulations 2020.
The regulations proposed that tea buyers submit a performance bond equivalent to 10 per cent of the estimated value of the tea they planned to buy before bidding commences.
However, AFA was compelled to withdraw the directives after realising the regulations had not gone through the public participation phase, including going through Parliament.
On June 29, AFA Acting Director General Anthony Muriithi announced the withdrawal of the requirement for buyers to submit the 10 per cent bond.
The move was met with opposition from the East African Tea Trade Association, which had written to AFA, noting that the implementation of the regulations was hurried.
“We are aware that the regulations were tabled before the National Assembly on June 4, 2020 and now await to be committed to the relevant committee for consideration. Consequently, the regulations have not acquired the force of law to be implemented as you purport in your letter,” reads the letter by the association’s lawyers to AFA.
At the same time, EATTA together with the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) have opposed the formation of a committee to oversee reforms in the tea industry.
