This archive report was first published on 31 July 2020.
Kenya is set to become the fourth country in Africa to have a fully functioning commodities exchange, with the introduction of a Warehouse Receipting System (WRS) for maize trading.
According to Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya, farmers will be required to deposit their maize in certified warehouses and receive warehouse receipts, which can be sold at a later date when the price is in their favour.
This is a departure from the traditional method of the State buying the commodity through the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB).
The WRS council, unveiled by Mr. Munya on Wednesday, has been directed to ensure that farmers' maize trades through the WRS this year.
Parliament passed the Warehouse Receipts Systems Act 2019 in June last year, providing a legal and regulatory framework for the development and regulation of WRS and the establishment of its council.
Mr. Munya stated that one of the key interventions of the WRS will be to improve commodity storage, reduce average post-harvest losses, curb value chain inefficiencies, increase financial earnings to farmers, traders, and service providers in the agricultural commodity trade.
He also urged the council to attract investments into the warehouse sector from private actors, who have been waiting for WRS for over 10 years and have been forced to pioneer their own system.
