A Bomet Priest Leads Tea Farmers' Revolt Against KTDA Over Low Bonuses

Small-scale tea farmers in Bomet County are threatening to cease supplying their crop to the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA), accusing the agency of economic exploitation.

The uprising is spearheaded by Father Ambrose Kimutai, the Priest of Ndaraweta Parish, who is demanding that the government intervene using a "bottom-up" approach within one month to support the struggling farmers following the announcement of disappointingly low bonuses.

Father Ambrose has declared his intention to begin mobilizing and educating farmers across the leading tea-growing counties of Bomet, Kericho, and Nandi on the exploitation they face through the agency's pricing and mismanagement.

The priest criticized the KTDA for straying from its original mandate.

He noted that the agency was established by the government in 1964 specifically to uplift small-scale African farmers who were previously prohibited from growing tea.

"It is unfortunate that now what was created by the government is destroying the small tea farmer by creating so many structures that are exploiting the small tea farmer," Father Ambrose stated on Sunday, October 26, 2025 after a thanksgiving Mass at Ndaraweta Parish.

He passionately denounced the low bonus figures, calling the Ksh. 13 per kilogram paid in his area "shameful."

He argued that this amount is inadequate to cover the high costs of production, inputs like subsidized fertilizer (estimated at Ksh. 2,500 per acre), and essential expenses such as the Social Health Authority (SHA) contributions.

The priest highlighted the significant disparity, noting that KTDA’s payments are substantially lower than other agencies like Sasini, which reportedly pay up to Ksh. 40 per kilogram of green leaf.

"We wait for a bonus, which is unfortunate in our area. Here it is 13 shillings per kilogram. Shame on you! 13 shilling! You give a farmer 13 shillings, they are crying. Farmers are crying," he stated, highlighting the emotional and financial toll on the tea growers from the West of Rift.

Father Ambrose has set a firm deadline, giving the Head of State one month to personally address the crisis after three years of alleged government inaction.

Should the government fail to intervene, the priest warned that he plans to instruct farmers to immediately stop picking and selling tea to KTDA factories.

Furthermore, he intends to lead a protest to block vital transport corridors connecting Kisii and Kisumu to Nairobi, a calculated move to demonstrate the collective power of the grassroots farmers and force a complete re-evaluation of the agency's operations across all KTDA buying centres in the Western Rift.

"We shall block all the roads... There will be no cars going from Kisii to Nairobi... and those ones from Kisumu to Nairobi," Father Ambrose asserted. "We shall ask the farmers to stop plucking tea and selling it to KTDA. We shall stop it."