NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 7 – AFEX Fair Trade, Kenya, a farmer service and supply chain solutions company has received a warehouse receipt operator license following a successful pilot phase in 2021.
The certification for one of its warehouses in Uasin Gishu marks the first time that a warehouse receipt operator license has been issued to a private sector company.
Speaking during the visit to the licensed warehouse, the Principal Secretary State Department of Trade, Alfred K’ombudo, commended AFEX and said that the government has plans of increasing certified warehouses across the country for the safe storage of farmers’ produce.
“We want to strengthen our Warehouse Receipt System (WRS). This is because it’s key to ensuring that post-harvest losses are greatly reduced and that farmers can rely on well-established and well-managed facilities,” remarked the PS.
AFEX Fair Trade, Managing Director, Tabitha Njuguna, said the certification will enable them to do more as they seek to improve the livelihoods of farmers who work with them.
“Warehouse receipt systems are fundamental to AFEX’s work in unlocking finance and further strengthening financial inclusion for farmers across Kenya,” she said.
Launched in July 2020 by the Ministry of Agriculture Livestock, Fisheries and Cooperatives, the Warehouse Receipt System (WRS) allows farmers to hold their produce in certified warehouses where they can be tested, cleaned, graded, and then stored, with the owners of the commodity receiving a receipt as proof of ownership.
This provides the farmers with the option to sell their produce when prices are favourable, while also serving the purpose of reducing post-harvest losses in the country.
“We look forward to a time when every AFEX warehouse will be certified and licensed as a warehouse receipt operator, and we are further enabled to provide services to the market in a way that is transparent and fair. We thank the WRSC for their guidance through this process and look forward to more milestones with the team,” said Njuguna.
The CEO of WRSC, Samwel Ogola, congratulated the AFEX Fair Trade Kenya team, stating, “This certification opens the space for private investment and participation in the Warehouse Receipt System in Kenya.”
This licensing follows several significant milestones that AFEX has recorded since beginning operations in Kenya in 2021.
With 17 warehouses spread across two counties in Kenya, AFEX has registered over 11,000 farmers and traded over 11,000MT of maize.
The company also successfully conducted a 1 million input program between March and May of 2022.
