Mombasa tea traders call for State action as Sudan closes its borders

Tea traders are still awaiting government intervention to resolve the diplomatic standoff between Kenya and Sudan, which has blocked tea exports to Khartoum.

Traders said yesterday that no sales have been made to the North African country since it imposed the ban on Kenyan tea imports last Friday.

Peter Kimanga, Chairman of the Tea Buyers Association, stated on Monday that their hopes now rest on Agriculture and Livestock Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe, whom they met on Friday for intervention.

“The situation remains unchanged since last week. There have been no new orders for Sudan. However, we met the CS on Friday and hope action will be taken,” he said.

The ban on Kenyan tea imports was imposed by Sudan as retaliation for Kenya hosting rebels from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), who have been at war with the Sudanese army for nearly two years. The RSF rebels were recently hosted by the Kenya Kwanza government in Nairobi and are said to be preparing to declare a government in territories under their control.

Sudan’s foreign ministry, loyal to army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, immediately criticised Kenya for hosting the rebels at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC). This move has since soured diplomatic relations between Khartoum and Nairobi, leading to the ban on Kenyan tea imports.

Kimanga said that 207 containers of 40-foot tea containers were waiting for shipment to Sudan, while other teas were in warehouses, on high seas, or at Port Sudan.

“We have teas destined for Sudan that need to be cleared. About 207 containers are at the port of Mombasa, awaiting shipment, and have already been value-added,” Kimanga explained.

Arthur Sewe, Chairman of the East African Tea Trade Association (EATTA), said the import ban is a major concern for traders and farmers alike in Kenya and the region.

“The ban on Kenyan tea imports to Sudan is a major concern to traders and farmers, and we are urging the government to intervene,” he said.

EATTA officials described the ban as critical, as Sudan is ranked among the top five markets for the Mombasa-based tea auction. The traders noted that the ban came during the holy month of Ramadan, when tea consumption is at its peak in Sudan.

Other key markets for Kenyan tea include Egypt, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.

The traders pointed out that about 207 40-foot containers, each containing 400 bags, destined for Sudan were lying at the port of Mombasa, with other teas in warehouses, at sea, or at the port in Sudan awaiting clearance.

The value of the tea destined for Sudan affected by the ban is estimated at around Sh1.3 billion.

“EATTA urges the Kenyan government to engage the government of Sudan urgently, to allow buyers a window of at least one month to clear the teas already dispatched to Sudan, those in the high seas, and the large stocks purchased for the Sudan market, which are still in warehouses in Mombasa,” EATTA Managing Director George Omuga said in a statement.

He said State action will be crucial to mitigate the losses smallholder farmers may incur due to the inability of buyers and exporters to pay for the teas already purchased from the auction,” he said.

Omuga, speaking in the auction hall alongside tea buyers, emphasised that the buyers have ongoing contracts, and that several containers of tea already dispatched to Sudan are now stranded in the high seas, with large stocks still in Mombasa warehouses that cannot be shipped due to the ban.