NAIROBI, Kenya — Githunguri Member of Parliament Gathoni Wamuchomba has criticised the government’s expanding tax and levy regime, warning that new charges targeting primary production facilities are forcing factories to shut down and undermining economic growth.
In a statement issued on Monday, the MP argued that tea buying centres, coffee pulping stations, coffee millers, fresh produce preparation facilities, abattoirs, and milk collection centres should be treated as primary production units rather than commercial manufacturers.
“Tea buying centers, coffee pulping stations, coffee millers, fresh produce preparation centers, abattoirs, and milk collection centers are primary production factories,” Wamuchomba said.
“The Government has targeted them with levies and high electricity bills that are forcing them to shut down. Countless factories can’t pay power bills this year.”
Her remarks follow the gazettement of the Standards (Standards Levy) Order, 2025, under Legal Notice No. 136 dated August 8, 2025, which requires all manufacturers to remit a standards levy to the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS).
Under the new regulation, manufacturers must pay 0.2 per cent of their monthly turnover, net of Value Added Tax, excise duty and applicable discounts, subject to a cap of Sh4 million per month.
Wamuchomba argued that the levy extends beyond traditional manufacturing and now affects farmers’ aggregation centres, pack houses and processing facilities that operate at the primary production level.
“This also includes all farmers’ fresh foods aggregation and pack houses and factories,” she said.
The legislator further faulted county governments, accusing them of imposing multiple layers of charges on the same facilities, including trade licences, environmental permits from the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), health certificates, advertising fees and workplace safety compliance costs.
“Most counties have also targeted them with countless county fees,” she said, warning that the cumulative burden is threatening the survival of agricultural value chains.
Wamuchomba called for a policy rethink, proposing that primary production facilities be categorised as Export Processing Zones (EPZs) to attract incentives, reduce regulatory overlap and stimulate growth.
“If we really mean business, all these primary production units should be categorized as EPZs and receive some growth stimulation, with a special multi-agency approach to coordinate their operations and survival,” she said.
Her comments come amid growing concern from farmers’ groups and processors over rising energy costs and regulatory fees, particularly in the tea, coffee and dairy sectors, which form the backbone of Kenya’s rural economy and export earnings.
The government has defended the standards levy in previous communications, arguing that it funds quality assurance, market access and consumer protection. However, critics argue that applying the levy uniformly across sectors fails to recognise the thin margins and public-interest role of primary producers.
In a sharp conclusion, Wamuchomba questioned the government’s economic vision, particularly comparisons with high-income economies.
“This Government is obviously obsessed with introducing levies after levies to already overburdened sectors,” she said. “How is killing primary producers going to spur economic growth of a country to the realms of Singapore?”
She concluded by dismissing the comparison outright, describing it as “a fallacy of ignoratio elenchi,” a logical error of arguing an irrelevant conclusion.
The remarks add to a widening debate over Kenya’s fiscal policy, the cost of doing business, and whether current tax measures align with the country’s stated goals of industrialisation, food security and inclusive economic growth.
