Kenya: Coffee Fund Moves to Curb Loan Defaulting

Posted to the web 30 June 2008 Mwaniki Wahome Nairobi The Coffee Development Fund intends to set up a credit reference bureau to bring down default rates among farmers who borrow from it. Speaking during the release of five-year strategic plan at the Kenya Institute of Education, the fund's managing trustee, Mr George Ooko, said the strategy includes plans to bring all financiers of the coffee sector under one umbrella. "To reduce overall indebtedness of the coffee farmer, we shall partner with Coffee Board of Kenya to set up the registry. In addition, we shall also lobby to stop marketing agents from giving cherry and partchment advances to coffee farmers," he said. The problem of indebtedness has plagued the coffee industry beginning mid-1990s following liberalisation that led to some farmers shifting to new players, hence... [read full story]