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Director pushed out in Sugar Directorate reorganisation

 

Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya has made new changes in the Sugar Directorate as he seeks to streamline the struggling sub-sector.

In the reorganisation announced this week, director Rosemary Owino has been replaced with her Nuts and Oil Directorate counterpart Willis Audi. The two were moved in interim capacities.

The Nation has established that Ms Owino’s exit was influenced by powerful external forces, who accused her of hampering sugar imports.

Among other factors, the influx of illegal imports has undermined the local industry, with sugar barons running the show.

The Sugar Directorate recently indicated that Kenya exhausted its duty-free sugar import quota from the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa) by October.

This means that any imported sugar will now attract 100 per cent VAT to limit stocks that come from partner countries and cushion the local sub–sector.

Our source said Ms Owino made it difficult for cartels to flood Kenya with cheap sugar thus affecting the prices of locally produced sugar.

Atyang’ Atiang, the chairman of the Kenya Association of Sugarcane and Allied Products, accused the Ministry of Trade of spearheading Ms Owino’s ejection from the Sugar Directorate.

“It is unfortunate that the Ministry of Trade, without consulting the parent Ministry of Agriculture, has been pushing for duty-free imports and destroying the lives of thousands of farmers who depend on the crop,” he said.

The changes come against the backdrop of plans for a Sh1.5 billion bailout announced by President Uhuru Kenyatta recently for struggling state-owned millers.

Industry players have been pushing to have the Sugar Directorate closely monitor the distribution of the funds and their use, and have proposed the creation of an inspection team to reassure farmers that the money is safe.

But Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) director-general Kello Harsama described the changes as a normal reorganisation that can be carried out by the CS from time to time.

Mrs Owino left just over one year after taking over from Solomon Odera, who was moved to Fibre Crops in May last year. He had replaced Naomi Kamau, who was deployed to the Ministry of Agriculture headquarters.

Before her appointment, Mrs Owino was head of marketing at the Tea Directorate.

Meanwhile, Mrs Owino was blamed for failing to strike a cordial working relation with staff at the Sugar Directorate.

“She was not a team player and she single-handedly conducted most of the affairs without consulting other critical staff in the department,” said the source, who did not want to be named for fear of being victimised.

Lack of a substantive board has seen the AFA boss and the other heads of directorates work in acting capacity for the past seven years.

Professional services firm Deloitte had advertised the position of director-general and the heads of directorates in 2018 but interviews were not conducted.

Mr Audi, who took over the office this week, has promised to work for the benefit of cane farmers who toil to supply millers with the critical raw materials.

“I am delighted to take over as the head of the Sugar Directorate and promise to work with likeminded people to restore the confidence of farmers and other stakeholders as we aim to revive the potential of the sugar sector,” he told Nation.    BY DAILY NATION  

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