Category Archives: Tobacco

KENYA: THE EXPLOITATION OF TOBACCO FARMERS IN MIGORI COUNTRY BY MULTINATIONAL By BUYING COMPANIES MUST COME TO AN IMMEDIATE END.

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By Martin Owiny.
Forwarded By Leo Odera Omolo

Tobacco farming in Uriri District of Migori county has generated intense heat arising from a significant threat to food security and a catalyst to increased poverty in the local communities growing the crop.

Arising from the campaign mounted against tobacco in the West, multinational tobacco firms are increasingly turning to the developing countries where their activities face little challenge, if any.

In Kenya agricultural production of tobacco has assuming a very significant prominence.Tobacco growing introduced into the country 30 years ago has increased tremendously over the years. Today, it is grown by about 20,000 small scale farmers over on 15,000 hectares of land. Current annual production is estimated at 16,000 tonnes.

The Kenyan Government, as most other developing countries, treasures the tobacco firms because of the revenues generated by the tobacco firms through taxes remitted. In fact between the tobacco firms, the farmers and the government, it is the government that is the greatest beneficiary. For instance, in 1997, BAT Kenya Ltd – one of the leading tobacco firms in the country – had a gross turn-over of over Kshs. 10 billion and remitted over Kshs. 6 billion.

Data from researches indicate that during the same period the farmers in the country are estimated to have earned about Kshs. 900 million. however this is debatable. In Uriri, tobacco farming has turned out to significantly act as a catalyst to degradation of the environment, increase of poverty among the farmers and is a threat to local community food security.

Negative Impacts

Past and current trends in tobacco control haven’t been geared towards campaigning against smoking alone, very little, if any, effort is directed at assessing the impact of tobacco growing on the farmers and the environment.

Many questions remain unanswered in regard to tobacco growing in the country. A lot of biomas is used in processing tobacco leaves. How safe is this practice to the environment? How commensurate are tobacco earnings to the effort put in by farmers? And what are the health implications of tobacco growing on the farmers? These are very important questions that need to be answered. They can only be answered properly after a well-executed study.

Nevertheless, preliminary investigations reveal that tobacco farming is highly labour-intensive-involving almost an entire family, leaving no room for growing of food crops. The effect is perpetual famine in the tobacco growing zones leading to malnutrition especially amongst the children.

Earnings from tobacco are not commensurate with the input by the farmers.Tobacco farmers are not in positions to feed, educate or clothe their children adequately. Child labour and school drop-out are common features in the tobacco growing zones.

During drying of tobacco leaves (curing) a lot of biomas from indigenous flora is used. This leads to deforestation and even soil erosion. Moreover the curing plants (barns) are designed in such a way that the farmers are exposed to tobacco smoke – potentially making them candidates for tobacco-related diseases.

Attempts to persuade farmers to opt out have not been successful. While some farmers understand the dangers inherent in tobacco farming, majority do not understand and are not ready to opt out. In Uriri, an important tobacco growing zone, the farmers do not envisage any alternative income generating activities as lucrative as tobacco farming. After all the tobacco firms provide inputs on easy terms and readily available market for the tobacco leaves and do not pay promptly.

Currently, o major tobacco processing companies in Migiri county have no paid farmers for tobacco delivered in as far as last year. Faced with this income gap farmers are reduced to abject poverty as the best arable land was used to grow the tedious, labour intensive, health threatening crops for which returns have become a tug of war with the companies.

Asking the farmers to seek alternative income activities is in itself the least leaders can do. These companies should be sued for all the direct and in direct effects of these crops to the farmers and their family in the long term.

Urir, generally, like most tobacco growing zones is endowed with fertile land, adequate and consistent rainfall and therefore supports most crops.Sugar cane planting do well in this region, the main drawback is lack of companies to pay on time leading almost the same result.

Another potential strategy of trying to disengage the farmers (most of whom are aged between 30 – 40 years and therefore still energetic) from tobacco farming would be to introduce and support micro technical enterprises e.g. carpentry, masonry, brick-making, welding, shoe repair, etc. In this regard provision of electricity at strategic centers/points and provision of start-up funds would be important towards diverting the attention of the farmers from tobacco.

It is time for the leadership in this areas to start influencing the farmers to drop tobacco farming and come up with strategic and viable alternatives. The world bodies (WHO, UNEP, World Bank, FAO, etc.) working on controlling the epidemic of tobacco in the world should take the tips and come in appropriately.

Obviously the Kenyan Government should not sit contented with receiving the revenues from this dangerous weed and assume that all is well. Through its various ministries concerned (Health, Agriculture, Environment, etc.) the Government should take the initiative and address the tobacco menace in totality.

Tobacco war is a big challenge and calls for a wider partnership. Networking involving local NGOs and even CBOs is very crucial. The extent to which farmer are being exploited alone call for criminal investigations. Why should one not be paid for services and good the have delivered?

As a leader in this tobacco growing regions i am saddened by the development
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About the author.

Martin Owiny is one of the youthful technocrats from Uriri district who is working with an NGO in Nairobi. He is a stakeholder in tobacco farming in Uriri district, and also a local politician one of the potential aspirants for the Uriri parliamentary seat in the yearn 2012.

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Kenya: SONYSUGAR told to repair the damaged Rapogi-Uriri road

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SONYSUGAR COMPANY TOLD TO REPAIR URIRI-RAPOGI ROAD WHICH WAS RECENTLY DAMAGED BY IT’S HEAVY MACHINERY AND TRACTORS.

Writes Leo Odera Omolo

The Awendo-based SONYSUGAR Company has been urged to undertake the repair work of feeder and access roads within its cane growing zones, which have been damaged by its heavy machines, tractors and worsened by the current long rains.

Uriri politician, who is also a Nairobi businessman, Mr. John Bob Awiti Otange last week wrote an open letter to the management of the government-owned white sugar manufacturing firm, and pointed out that an 8 kilometer section of Rapogi-Uriri road, which is linking the interior parts of the district to the main-Kisii-Awendo Migori highway is in a pathetic state. It has become impassable, particularly during the current heavy rains, and need urgent gravelling.

Mr Awiti-Otange pointed out that the on going heavy rains, which is pounding the Lake region incessantly, has damaged a number of roads in the district, including the Rapogi-Oria and Oyani Achuth, as well as Rapogi-Awendo. The situation has been worsened by the recent harvesting of cane in farms adjacent to Rapogi market, where the Awendo based sugar miller used heavy machinery, while winching its tractors stuck in the mud.

The state of these roads has now made it impossible for motorists, including residents, who works in towns in other parts of Kenya, as well as those who live in Nairobi, to access their rural homes, forcing many families to walk on foot for long distances before they can access their rural homes. Some motorists are forced to abandon their vehicles at Awendo town or in Uriri shopping centre and then trek between eight and 15 kilometers by foot, in order to be able to reach their homes.

The businessman-cum-politician reminded the SONYSUGAR management that Rapogi-Uriri road has for many years been an all weather road until its tractors used it a couple of weeks ago while ferrying cane from the field to the factory. This was done during the current heavy downpour and has devastated nearly all section of Uriri-Rapogi-Oria.

Rapogi-Oria is so important economically as it links an area where both tobacco and sugarcane are grown in abundance and it is now not possible for the farmers to have their products and crops transported to the market. The pathetic state of road hurts the local farming communities. It has hit them below the belt as they are now stranded with their produce at home.

Mr. Awiti-Otange also urged the Provincial administration and police authorities to curb the upsurging waves of crime rate around Rapogi trading center and its environs, saying the local communities are now living in fear, following the recent spate of cowardly attacks and violent robberies against traders and individual within the vicinity of Rapogi. The government, he added, should use its chiefs and their assistant in combating and stamping out thuggery in the area.

Apart from Rapogi Oria road, which is linking Uriri and Ndhiwa district, the Rapogi Awendo road is a busy road for the economy of the region, and the SONYSUGAR company should undertake its repair, together with the Ministry of Works, so that people returning home for Easter Holidays can access their rural homes.

He suggested that the repair work should start at field 3A, Moses Awiti farm, near the junction of Rapogi Awendo and Rapogi Uriri road, and run-over Nyarago bridge, towards Ramuom School and Kaminolewe, covering Nyamilu shopping Centre, to the Uriri D.C’s office. This particular section needs urgent attention.

Mr Bob-Awiti-Otange also urged those charged with the responsibility of handling CDF within Uriri constituency to ensure that the damaged small bridges linking the villages are repaired immediately, as this would make it much easier for the farmers to transport their wares to the marketplaces.

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leooderaomolo@yahoo.com