Kisii County government has started registering coffee farmers in the region biometrically to eliminate malpractices in the coffee industry which have left many of them poor and counting losses.
Speaking during the launch of Biometric System Registration of farmers at Nyamache Coffee Farmers Society in Nyamache Sub- County, Kisii County, Executive Member for Agriculture Esman Onsarigo said that farmers’ details will be captured at the factory level and headquarters in Kisii town.
“When a farmer brings coffee cherries to the factory from the farm, he is able to weigh the cherries and see how many kilos he has weighed in and receive an alert in his cell phone,” Onsarigo explained.
Onsarigo also said the system will enable the county government to know real coffee farmers, their number, location, and number of coffee trees they own in Kisii County.
Robert Kipng’etich, a Biometric System Consultant, urged coffee farmers in the region to turn up in large numbers with Identity cards or Huduma number cards for registration.
“Farmers should ensure that they have a working phone number and active bank account for registration to continue,” Kipng’etich added.
Agostino Kibwage, a Coffee Farmer, pleaded with the government to provide farmers with new coffee milling machines and tighten security to avoid regular coffee theft in Nyamache.
Kisii County is among the 23 counties picked for the coffee farmers’ digitization exercise which will run for three months.
By Erastus Michieka
