Effects of Reforms on Productivity of Coffee in Kenya

Abstract

Coffee is a major player in the agricultural sector and has contributed immensely to the Kenyan economy through foreign exchange earnings, farm incomes, and employment. To streamline the coffee subsector, many policies have been implemented since 1986. These policies were aimed at enhancing the performance of the coffee subsector in terms of increasing productivity. The general objective of this study was to assess the impact of policy reforms on coffee productivity in Kenya for the period 1980 to 2010. The study found out that only commercialization of many millers could spur productivity in the coffee sector. The study recommends that there is need to reform the cooperative societies which is the direct mechanism of the reforms transmission .The government should also put measures that focus on value addition of coffee enabling the country to export finished coffee products and thus fetch better prices for the same output.