
Jamlic Munyasya, economist, business consultant and corporate trainer./HANDOUT
Kenya is on a crossroad in the journey of its economic transformation. Speaking at the 2025 Nairobi International Trade Fair, President William Ruto made a decisive declaration: the era of exporting raw agricultural produce must end.
For years Kenya has been exporting tea, coffee, hides and skins, cotton, livestock products in their raw form, only to import them back as premium finished goods. Such an extractive model has deprived the farmers and the country the maximum value of its resources.