Kenya has launched a sweeping coffee revival drive built around faster, more direct payments to growers, even as the flagship payment reform at its core continues to face legal and cooperative resistance.
On 22 June 2026, President William Ruto unveiled the Coffee Revival Through Cooperative Societies Programme at General Kassam Stadium in Kianyaga, Kirinyaga County, setting a government target to triple national coffee production from 50,000 to 150,000 metric tonnes by 2028 and expand planted area from 110,000 to 150,000 hectares, according to KBC Digital and The Mt Kenya Times.
The programme includes the planned distribution of more than 20 million coffee seedlings and the commissioning of over 900 “coffee champions” to support farmers in new and existing growing areas, KBC Digital reported. Coffee-growing zones are slated to extend beyond Kenya’s traditional central highlands into Western Kenya, the Rift Valley and Nyanza regions.
Financially, the government has tied the revival plan to substantial spending and a controversial restructuring of how money flows back to producers. Coffee Geography Magazine reported that the state has allocated Sh18 billion (about US$120 million) to a fertilizer subsidy that has cut prices from Sh7,500 to Sh2,500 per bag, alongside Ksh2 billion for coffee debt waivers in the 2026/27 budget, a further Ksh2 billion for certified seedling production and distribution, Ksh1 billion to support cooperative factories through county governments, another Ksh1 billion for quality seedlings, and KSh2 billion for modern eco-pulpers.
Launching the programme, President Ruto said the reforms were designed to change how value is shared along the chain. Citing new payment levels, he stated at the event, quoted by 001 FM: “These reforms have produced results, with farmers now receiving up to Ksh 160 per kilogram. This is part of our commitment to ensuring increased and direct income for smallholder farmers.” Coffee Geography Magazine separately reported that prices paid to farmers had risen from about Sh50 per kilogram to Sh158 per kilogram over the past two years, while the government is targeting returns of up to Sh250 per kilogram.
At the heart of these changes is the Direct Settlement System (DSS), a payment mechanism under which proceeds are remitted within five days of sale and at least 80% of the sales value is paid directly to farmers, according to KBC Digital, Coffee Geography Magazine and The Mt Kenya Times. Ruto told attendees that “timely payment is not a favor to the farmer; it is the farmer’s right,” Coffee Geography Magazine reported.
However, the same system has been at the centre of a protracted dispute between the government, cooperatives and parts of the judiciary. On 18 November 2025, the Kerugoya High Court suspended the mandatory implementation of DSS until 20 May 2026, ruling that it lacked sufficient public participation and parliamentary approval, according to Kenyans.co.ke. The outlet reported that farmers and cooperative leaders had petitioned the court, arguing that the new payment model affected their ability to save and that they preferred receiving proceeds through savings and credit cooperatives (SACCOs).
Following the ruling, Felix Muriithi, chairperson of the National Coffee Cooperative Union, welcomed the suspension, calling it “a new dawn for coffee production in the country,” Kenyans.co.ke reported. Yet after the suspension lapsed in May 2026, The Mt Kenya Times noted that President Ruto publicly defended the direct payment model at the Kirinyaga launch, setting up a direct contrast between the administration’s push for rapid, individual payouts and concerns from cooperative structures about how those payments are managed.
The revival plan also aims to reshape the trading landscape. Ruto told attendees that “through the Nairobi Coffee Exchange and farmer-owned brokerages, our cooperatives can now sell Kenyan coffee directly to the world,” KBC Digital reported. In a separate context, Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe said, “We have agreed that the auction must go online, allowing international buyers to participate directly. Cartels will no longer hold the market hostage. Technology will deliver transparency and better prices for our farmers,” according to Kenyans.co.ke.
Alongside the national launch, President Ruto pledged that the 2026/27 budget he was due to sign on 23 June would include Ksh2 billion to clear coffee farmers’ debts, responding to an appeal from Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru, Kenyans.co.ke reported. Over Sh979 million of that debt relief is earmarked for Kirinyaga County alone, according to 001 FM, underscoring how the drive to accelerate payments and restructure the value chain is being closely watched in Kenya’s key coffee-growing regions.
