Former employees of the defunct Kenya Cooperative Creameries (KCC), who have been battling for nearly 30 years to secure unpaid benefits, now have a reason to hope after the government committed to resolving their claims.
Cabinet Secretary for Cooperatives and MSMEs Development Wycliffe Oparanya told the Senate Committee on Labour and Social Welfare that an Interministerial Committee will meet next week to begin auditing and verifying the claims, estimated at Sh204 million.
The team, which includes the Office of the Attorney General, the Ministries of Cooperatives, Labour, Agriculture, and the National Treasury, is expected to table its findings by the end of October.
Oparanya said the government aims to include the payments in the November supplementary budget.
“We expect a supplementary budget to be processed in November and we would then appeal to this Committee to consult the National Assembly to approve the payments to the former KCC workers,” he said.
The Cabinet Secretary’s appearance marked a breakthrough in the long-running dispute, which has dragged through courts since the 1990s. Oparanya had previously skipped several summonses by the Senate, drawing a fine of Sh500,000 for contempt. On Tuesday, he apologised and pleaded with senators to lift the penalty. After lengthy deliberations, the Committee agreed to waive the fine.
Labour CS Alfred Mutua, who also attended the session, suggested preparing a Cabinet Memo to secure Executive approval, saying the payments would be in line with “equity and social justice.”
The Attorney General has already advised the State to pursue an out-of-court settlement, noting that although the assets and liabilities of the old KCC were transferred to the New KCC, the dues of former workers were left out, locking them in decades of legal uncertainty.
The Interministerial Committee is expected to table its report to the Senate Committee by November 6, 2025.
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