Makueni: Farmers in Makueni County are set to benefit from a new digital agricultural trading platform linked to the warehouse receipt system hosted by the Kenya National Multi Commodities Exchange Limited (KOMEX).
According to Kenya News Agency, the revelations were made by KOMEX team leader Deputy Director Boniface Makau during a courtesy call on Makueni County Deputy Governor Lucy Mulili in her Wote office. Makau commended Makueni for its leadership in pulse production, noting that green grams, cow peas, and pigeon peas farmers are the primary beneficiaries of this new trading system.
Makau explained that farmers will have the opportunity to list their produce and preferred prices on the digital platform. Buyers can then make direct payments to sellers' bank accounts within 48 hours, ensuring faster transactions and reducing the risk of exploitation by middlemen. "Through the platform, farmers will be able to reap maximum profits and avoid exploitation by middlemen," said Makau.
The digital platform aims to streamline market access for both agricultural and non-agricultural commodities. It offers essential services such as price discovery, risk information, market information, and trading financing, while creating a transparent trading system. KOMEX, a financial state corporation under the State Department for Trade, is tasked with promoting market access and addressing inefficiencies in commodity trading.
The platform is currently in the onboarding phase, targeting a wide range of stakeholders including farmers, aggregators, cooperatives, traders, warehouse operators, financial institutions, off-takers, service providers, and institutional consumers.
Deputy Governor Mulili emphasized that the platform will eliminate brokers and unscrupulous businessmen who have been exploiting farmers, ensuring they reap maximum profits from their farm produce. She highlighted the importance of collaboration between the county and national governments to address storage facility inadequacies, and mentioned that the programme will be piloted, having already been implemented in Migori County.
"There is a need to collaborate between the national and county governments to address the inadequate storage facilities. Farmers stand to benefit since they will get maximum profits," Mulili stated.