Regulations and Compliance

Services

Registration and Licensing of dealers along the fibre value chains;
Compliance monitoring inspections/audits of Fibre Dealers based on the Fibre standards and codes of practice;
Surveillance inspections on illegal and unregistered traders along border points and in the major towns in the country,
Development and review of Fibre Standards and the Industry Codes of Practice in collaboration with Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS).
Capacity building of County Government officers on matters relating to regulations and compliance to ensure effective discharge of duties.
Participation in codex committee meetings on matters related to agricultural policies, standards and fibre trade locally and internationally,
Checking and evaluation of conformity of the fibre imports or exports with national regional and international standards;
Holding of information exchange forums with stakeholders along the Fibre value chains on matters of interest;
To enforce compliance with regulations and standards for conformity to product quality;
To enhance compliance to local, regional and international standards; and
To promote self-regulation among the various categories of dealers along the value chain in line with relevant regulations.

Fibre Crops Regulations and Standards

1.The Crops (Fibre Crops) regulations 2020

The enactment of the Agriculture and Food Act, 2013 necessitated the formulation of regulations to operationalize the Crops Act, 2013. The Fibre Directorate formulated the Crops (Fibre Crops) Regulations, 2020 which were gazetted on 8th July 2020 vide gazette notice NO 119. The overall objective of the regulations is to establish a level playing ground for all stakeholders and provide a framework for compliance.

Scope of application of the Fibre Regulations

The registration and licensing of dealers;
Standards and quality assurance of fibre crops and fibre crops products;
The Collection, collation, and maintenance of the Fibre crops Database;
The Conduct of inspections, audits, and surveillance for compliance;
The determination of the price of fibre crops and marketing of the crops and the crop products;
The classification and grading of fibre crops;
The basic requirements for agreements between growers and dealers; and
The issuance of import and export permits.

The overall objective of the guidelines is to empower value chain(s) players to monitor their members’ activities through the establishment of suitable mechanisms such as associations. The private sector self –regulation necessitates the development of operational rules and by-laws for effective self –governance aimed at increased compliance with the regulatory framework and standards. Effective self- regulation minimizes the presence of regulators, reducing the cost of regulation, preserves market integrity, reduces business risks, and enhances investor confidence.

Self regulation guidelines

The Directorate has developed comprehensive standards (codes of practice) in collaboration with the Kenya Bureau of Standards(KEBS) and the Fibre crops stakeholders. The overall objective of the standards is to ensure quality products for high profitability and consumer satisfaction. The Standards are available from the Kenya Bureau of Standards. The standards are:

Cotton Industry – Code of Practice, KS 2857:2019

Sisal Industry - Code of Practice, KS 2858:2019

Registration and Licensing

The Directorate issues the following licenses:

NO	Category of dealer	The objective of the License
1.	Registration of fiber crops plantation	Authorizes the holder to grow and process own fibre
2.	Fibre Retailers	To trade in fiber crops or fiber crops products
3.	Fibre Collection Center	Designates a place or building for the buying and selling of fiber crop products
4	Fibre crops manufacturing factory (Ginneries/ Sisal Factories)	Authorizes the processing of seed cotton or sisal
5.	Fibre exporters and importers	Authorizes the holder to export or import fibre crops or fibre crop products

NB. Various application forms are provided in the e portal (IMIS).

Registration and Licensing procedure

The following steps will be followed during the application and processing of the licenses -

Dealers to register with e portal and obtain login credentials to the IMIS e portal
Dealers to login to the IMIS portal and upload the prerequisite license requirements.
The Directorate licensing committee deliberates on the application and makes recommendations to the Agriculture and Food Authority(AFA) vetting and Licensing committee
Gazettement of application upon approval by the AFA licensing Committee.
The Directorate issues a letter of Comfort or license to the applicant 30 days after gazettement.

Requirements for registration and licensing

Registration of new applicants Requirements (online)

Dully filled application form
Certified copy of certificate of Incorporation/Certificate of registration
Certified copy of CR12 certificate from the Registrar of Companies
Any other requirement deemed necessary by the Authority or County Government

NB: Certificate of Registration issued

2. Licensing of Registered Dealers (additional to the Registration documentation)

Environmental Impact Assessment/NEMA certificate, where applicable;
Certificate of compliance issued in accordance with regulation 12 in case of a manufacturer;
Copy of valid tax compliance
Recent bank statements for the previous six(6) months from the date of application
A copy of agreement for source of fibre crops or fibre crops products
An inspection report from the relevant licensing authority
Certified copy of business trading permit issued by the county Government

NB: Certificate of Compliance/letter comfort shall be issued to those who seek to establish processing or manufacturing facilities (Ginneries or Sisal Factories) for a period not exceeding 24 months.

3. Renewal of License

Fully filled application form - Online
Certified copy of business trading permit from respective county government
Copy of valid tax compliance certificate
An inspection report or certificate of compliance from the relevant licensing Authority
Annual marketing and production returns for the previous year
Copies of agreements for the sources of fibre crops products
Any other requirement that may be deemed necessary by the Authority or the County government.

4.Fees for Licenses and Permits ( payable to the Authority)

CATEGORY OF LICENCE/PERMIT	AMOUNT (kes/usd)
Fibre crops retailer license	KES 2,500
License for Fibre crops(sisal) for export/imports markets only	KES 8,000
License for Fibre crops (cotton lint) for export/import markets only	Ksh. 2,000
License for Fibre crops (cotton lint) for import markets only	USD2,000
License for Fibre crops(Cotton seed/cotton seed cake) for exports/imports markets	KES1,000
License for fibre crops marketing for domestic markets only	KES5,000
License for sisal manufacturing factory authorizing the holder to process own sisal leaf exclusively	KES2,000
License fees for sisal manufacturing factory authorizing the holder to process own sisal leaf as well as other growers.	KES 2,000
Cotton ginning license	KES2,000
Cotton seed Milling license.	KES5,000
Sisal spinning factory/cotton textile milling factory licence	KES 5,000
Certificate of compliance.	KES 5,000
Lint classing services per sample of 300gms	KES 150
Sisal Inspection