The government has disbursed Sh654 million to offset arrears owed to farmers and workers as it mulls the revitalisation of the troubled sugar industry.
Agriculture Principal Secretary Kiprono Ronoh said they have received the approved exchequer for the appropriated budget of Sh654 million in the 2023-24 financial year to support sugar reforms. Of the money, Sh354 million will be used to pay farmers arrears in Nzoia, Muhoroni, Chemelil and Sony millers while Sh150 million will be used to offset a three months salary arrears for workers at Nzoia Sugar.
The remaining Sh150 million is to be shared by the remaining companies to pay one-month salary to workers. Though the workers are owed more than Sh5 billion, the PS noted that the disbursement was the first tranche and that the payment process had just started.
“So, the payment made will only cover one month of the arrears of the total monies owed to them by the sugar firms,’’ he explained in a letter to the AFA Director General.
He said: “We have received the exchequer for the appropriated budget of Sh654 million in the financial year 2023/2024 supplementary budget II sup[1]port for sugar Reforms.’’
Unionisable workers But the Unionisable workers drawn from the State-owned sugar mills aren’t happy with the share of the amount given to the factories. Led by Kenya National Federation of Sugarcane Growers Muhoroni branch secretary Noah Opiyo, the workers claimed that their arrears were too small for 8,000 workers.
Although the State had disbursed Sh354 million last week which was used to clear the last tranche of funds owed to farmers, the workers have also started to get their dues.
Opiyo, however, claimed that part of the Sh5 billion owed to the industry workers who have gone for over three years and several months was too little to make an impact. He questioned the rationale of giving Nzoia Sh150 million alone while giving the rest of its peers a similar amount to share.
‘’This is what we are protesting as biased,’’ he said The workers urged the government to move fast and settle the worker’s arrears before it sets a new stage to revamp and commercialise the industry and salvage it from collapse. Opiyo was addressing the press in the Awendo sugar belt accompanied by several ionizable employers.
Although they were happy that the state had started making the payments, they asked that the worker’s arrears should be cleared as well as that of farmers.
“We want to thank the President for making good his commitment to revive the sugar industry. We support. But all debts must be sorted in real-time,’’ said Opiyo
Kenya Union of Sugarcane Plantation and Allied Workers (KUSPAW) General Secretary Francis Wangara also accused the government of bias and discrimination.
Four sugar companies “It is strange that the ministry has chosen to pay Nzoia Sh150 million and share a similar amount amongst three other millers.
This is unacceptable and an attempt to test our solidarity,” he said. Wangara said the move goes against President Ruto’s promise to set aside Sh600 million as part of the payment to workers from the four sugar companies.
