Related News

The Kenya Sugar Board (KSB) has warned that the East Africa Community Treaty, which becomes effective in November, is a threat to the Kenyan sugar industry.

KSB chairman Julius Nyarotso says enforcement of the treaty will usher in cheap sugar from other East African countries which will affect the sale of locally manufactured sugar.

“If the prices of sugar from <

  • xml:namespace prefix = st1 />Uganda and Tanzania will fall below our current prices, then our sugar factories will not be able to compete favourably with commodities from the other two countries,” adds Nyarotso.

    The KSB chairman says the government’s hands would be tied over control of the flow of goods within the three countries as this will amount to undermining the treaty.

    The three East African countries have signed the treaty which will allow free trade in all the markets in the region.

    The treaty was signed by Presidents Mwai Kibaki (Kenya), Yoweri Kaguta Museveni (Uganda) and Benjamin Mkapa (Tanzania).

    Meanwhile, sugar cane farmers from Western have expressed joy over the securing of Kenya’s sugar quota to the European market.

    And sugar companies says they would exploit the new development to ensure the country does not lose the quota due to inability to service it as it happened 17 years ago when it stood at 5,000 metric tonnes annually.

    Cane farmers in Mumias, Nzoia and Busia sugar belts add that they are confident that the problems which they have been facing due to massive debts owed to them by sugar firms and poor cane prices is going to end.