Kenya, a country that imports over half of its sugar needs, faces a major challenge in ensuring a consistent supply of sugarcane for its processing plants.
To address this issue, the government has approved a 600 million shilling ($4.6 million) allocation from the public treasury to support sugarcane production. President William Ruto announced that this financial support will focus on developing sugarcane seedlings in the “sugar belt” located in the western part of the country, around the cities of Kisumu and Kakamega.
Part of a Broader Investment in the Sugar Industry
According to local media reports, this funding is part of a larger $15 million program by the government to bolster the development of the sugar industry. This initiative comes at a time when sugarcane production has plummeted by 36% to 5.6 million tons in 2023, as per data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS). Sugar production has also declined in the same year, reaching a 40-year low of 472,773 tons.
Bridging the Gap Between Production and Consumption
Data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reveals that East Africa’s largest economy consumes approximately 1.2 million tons of sugar annually, more than double its production. To bridge this gap, the government relies on imports, primarily from the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), Thailand, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia.
Sugarcane Cultivation in Kenya
According to the USDA, sugarcane cultivation in Kenya covers an area of over 250,000 hectares. The government’s investment in sugarcane seedlings aims to increase domestic production and reduce the country’s reliance on imports. This initiative is crucial for ensuring a stable supply of sugarcane for the sugar industry and meeting the growing demand for sugar in the country.