Kenya produces 28,000 bales of cotton annually now against a requirement of 140,000 bales. To meet the demand, companies import 80 percent of the raw material from India, China, and the rest of East Africa.
Agriculture and food authority acting director general Beatrice Nyamwanu said the renewed focus to rejuvenate the sector would scale up cotton production, which is presently 3,000 metric tonnes, according to Kenyan media reports.
Kenya recently said farmers will receive free chemicals and training to ensure maximum yield and the government is expected to provide enough raw materials for the textile industry.
The state department for industrialization, the Ministry of agriculture, and the Rift Valley Textile East Africa Ltd (RIVATEX) will collaborate on the project.
The step is expected to boost the domestic cotton industry.
The government has injected Sh7 billion to modernize the Rift Valley Textile mills (Rivatex) and revived the Luanda ginnery in Busia, but the facilities are operating below their capacities due to the collapsed cotton value chain.
Kenya takes initiatives to revive the domestic textile industry
