The government has warned that it will begin auctioning properties belonging to coffee cooperative society officials found guilty of embezzling farmers’ funds, in a bid to stamp out corruption and revive the struggling sector.

Cooperatives and MSMEs Cabinet Secretary Wycliffe Oparanya said the government will no longer bear the burden of writing off debts caused by mismanagement in cooperative societies, noting that these losses are hurting coffee farmers who continue to suffer deductions on their earnings.

“We can’t write off all debts every now and then and keep moving forward. The government is ready to auction properties of directors who steal farmers’ money,” Oparanya said.

The CS revealed that cooperative societies currently owe Sh6 billion and are lobbying for the government to cancel the debts. However, he said some of the funds are being misappropriated, prompting the government to take tougher action.

The last time the government waived coffee farmers’ debts was in 2011, when it released Sh1 billion to support the sector’s recovery.

Oparanya said the Cooperatives Bill, which is before Parliament, will help address mismanagement by introducing reforms aimed at protecting farmers. These include term limits for elected cooperative leaders to encourage better governance.

“Farmers will get many benefits once the reforms led by the President take full effect and the Bill is implemented to the letter,” he said, adding that the new law will help dismantle exploitative networks of brokers and cartels that prey on farmers.

He also announced that the government has set aside Sh500 million to purchase five million coffee seedlings this year as part of efforts to raise both quality and quantity of production.

The seedlings, he said, will be distributed through cooperative societies due to the existing shortage, which has forced importation from neighbouring countries.

“There are only three million seedlings currently being produced in the whole country hence the importations,” he said, explaining that the new seedlings will be tailored for different climatic conditions in various coffee-growing zones.

He said coffee production in Kenya has fallen sharply over the years, with output dropping from more than 200,000 tonnes in the 1980s to around 50,000 tonnes currently.

“Farmers produced more than 200,000 tonnes in the 80s compared to today’s production of about 50,000 tonnes. We need to increase our production,” Oparanya said.

Tigania West MP John Mutunga, who attended the forum, called for the introduction of guaranteed minimum returns to cushion farmers and urged for consistent delivery of subsidised fertiliser to coffee factories.