The only aloe processing factory in Kenya lies dormant due to a dispute over its control.
Baringo Aloe Bio-enterprise project was commissioned by the European Union early last year.
The EU invested Sh10.5 million ($162,000) in the project, which at one time was touted to be a solution to the poverty in the semi-arid region.
However, suspicion among interested parties has stalled the project.
The excitement that accompanied the construction of the factory has turned to anxiety and disappointment for residents who domesticated the wild plant expecting huge returns. Local leaders and a private investor, brought on board by the Government to help solicit market for its products, are haggling over the control of the firm.
The firm’s establishment was meant to legalise the export of aloe extract to pharmaceutical companies.
A big area of Baringo District is under the arid and semi arid lands (ASALS) and the residents depend on livestock. But it is the aloe that might turn out to be their gold mine.
The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and the Kenya Forest Research Institute (Kefri) are key partners in the project. The two organisations were expected to provide the regulatory responsibility and carry out research.
“We want farmers to plant more because we cannot sustain the factory if farmers harvest plants in the bush. In fact, this is an endangered plant that we need to protect,” said an officer at the site.
Chairman David Chemwotei says: “The project belongs to the community and nobody else, so the investor should abide by our demands, or we will get another partner and stop him from playing any other role.” He said the group refused to a sign a memorandum of understanding with the investor because “he prepared it alone to suit his interests.’’
The residents claim they are the rightful owners of the project, but government officials maintain that a third party has to be included to help play the role of marketing the business and the products.
District commissioner Hassan Farah said that the biggest challenge was on the side of the farmers to satisfy the required capacity to ensure that the factory remains operational once it opens.
The plant is among the endangered species and is under government protection. The farmers are therefore not allowed to harvest those growing in the bush but are encouraged to plant their own.
The plant takes up to three years to mature and Kefri officials maintain that this has been the biggest contributor to the delay. The organisation has been providing training to the farmers on the various methods of planting and harvesting aloe. To stop them from uprooting the whole plant, they are taught how to harvest mature leaves and save the plant for future harvests.
The Daily Nation
