Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has expressed deep concern over what he described as a major setback for Kenya’s tea industry following a deal between President William Ruto and Sudan’s rebel movement, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
According to Gachagua, the agreement has caused immense suffering among Kenyan tea farmers after Sudan banned the importation of Kenyan tea.
Speaking during a TV interview on Sunday, October 5, 2025, Gachagua said that the move had crippled a sector that once stood as a backbone of the rural economy.
He explained that during his time as the overseer of tea reforms, the industry was doing well, but a single wrong decision by the President had wiped out the progress made over several years.
The former deputy president accused President Ruto of engaging in questionable business dealings with the RSF, led by General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, widely known as Hemedti.
He said that the decision to link Kenya’s trade to the Sudanese rebel group had serious economic repercussions, especially for small-scale farmers who depend on tea as their main source of income.
Gachagua noted that the ban on Kenyan tea by Sudan had caused a sharp decline in tea prices locally, leaving many farmers unable to meet their daily needs or repay agricultural loans.
He added that the impact of the ban had been felt across major tea-growing regions, including Kericho and Bomet counties, where many of the President’s own supporters are now feeling the pain of the fallout.
Gachagua lamented that the situation was avoidable and blamed it on poor judgment from the Head of State. He said that the once-thriving industry had now been thrown into confusion, with warehouses full of unsold tea and brokers taking advantage of desperate farmers.
The former DP also accused President Ruto of putting personal interests above national welfare. He claimed that the President’s alleged gold-for-arms dealings with Sudan had not only violated Kenya’s trade ethics but had also cost thousands of farmers their livelihoods.
According to Gachagua, the trade involved giving arms to Sudan’s rebel group in exchange for gold, a move he said was both morally wrong and economically reckless. He insisted that Kenya’s international reputation and agricultural economy had been compromised just to satisfy personal greed.
