Kenya: Better Prices Lure Kitui Farmers Back to Cotton - If Seed, Rain and Young Farmers Follow

As the road approaches Kitui County, the landscape becomes stark and arid, with little indication of fertile farmland. Nevertheless, farmers are gearing up to plant cotton, a crop that has persisted through the region's fluctuating fortunes for generations.

Kitui is a semi-arid area, and farming is inherently risky due to unreliable rainfall, extreme temperatures, and the potential for devastating crop failures. Yet, cotton has remained a viable option for some farmers in the county. Our visit begins at Mosa Shopping Centre, a usually bustling market, which is eerily quiet on this day.

We meet Mutuku Mulei, chairman of the Kitui Rural Farmers Cooperative, and several cooperative members. They lead us through the villages, which blend seamlessly into the surrounding landscape, dotted with dry shrubs and sandy paths.

The arrival of some rain earlier in the week has left faint signs of moisture along the roads, a small comfort for farmers who are preparing to plant their crops. Mulei explains that this visit coincides with land preparation, rather than the height of the cotton-growing season. The fields are largely empty, a stark reminder of how easily cotton farming can disappear when farmers lose confidence in the crop.

For years, poor prices, delayed inputs, and problems at ginneries (facilities that clean, compress, and package cotton) pushed many farmers away from cotton. "Many farmers had given up on cotton because of poor prices and mismanagement at the ginneries," Mulei says. However, the Agriculture and Food Authority is working to strengthen the capacities of local groups to process raw cotton lint into products for local industries like the Kitui County Textile Centre (KICOTEC).

Despite the cooperative currently having only about 70 members, down from 85 three years ago, Mulei believes confidence could be returning. The price of cotton has increased from KSh54 to KSh72 per kilogramme over the last three years, providing farmers with an incentive to reconsider the crop.

The potential benefits of cotton extend beyond Kitui. Kenya's domestic cotton lint production has steadily increased from 1,300 tonnes in 2021 to approximately 8,800 tonnes (or around 25,000 bales). Currently, local supply satisfies less than 15% of manufacturer needs, forcing Kenya to spend hard currency on importing cotton and yarn from neighboring Tanzania and Uganda.

Globally, efforts are underway to encourage more African cotton to be processed and traded within Africa, rather than being exported as raw materials. For Mulei, this season presents an opportunity to increase acreage to at least one acre per farmer, as weather forecasts predict more reliable rainfall in the coming weeks. However, the optimism must be tempered by a list of ongoing challenges, including access to quality seed and pesticides.

Last season, farmers received poor-quality seed and faced pest attacks that affected nearly half of their crop. The consequences of such issues can be felt throughout the entire production cycle, from quantity and quality of the harvest to the final price received by farmers.