The Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) has confirmed that smallholder tea farmers under its network will receive their fertilizer suspense refunds in January 2025.
In a statement issued on Thursday, November 28, the KTDA noted that the refunds would be disbursed alongside the Green Leaf (GL) payments scheduled for early January.
The agency further clarified on its X account that the payments would be made by January 5, 2025.
The refund process will involve reconciling records to determine the amount payable to each farmer. This reconciliation will account for factors such as the type and quantity of fertilizers ordered.
This announcement follows the government’s recent allocation of Ksh2 billion for a fertilizer subsidy program, which reduced the cost of a 50kg bag of NPK fertilizer from Ksh3,400 to Ksh2,500.
“The Government of Kenya provided a subsidy of Ksh2 billion in November 2024, lowering the price to Ksh2,500 per bag,” KTDA stated.
The agency procured the fertilizer through competitive bidding, securing 96,988 metric tonnes for the year, with the final batch of 8,000 metric tonnes expected to reach farmers by early December.
KTDA expressed gratitude to the government, highlighting how the subsidy has eased costs for farmers, thereby enhancing their overall earnings. “On behalf of tea farmers affiliated to KTDA, we thank the Government of Kenya for the subsidy that led to reduced fertilizer costs and better payments to farmers,” the agency said.
In the 2024/25 financial year’s first supplementary budget, the government increased the allocation for the fertilizer subsidy from Ksh7.5 billion to Ksh10 billion, underscoring its commitment to supporting agricultural productivity.
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