Plantations still have a place in Kenya

wwMurang’a residents want a piece of Kakuzi plantation. Rift Valley residents want a piece of tea plantations and Laikipia residents want some ranches.  Taita residents want a piece of expansive estates. The list can be longer.

The appetite for such land has always been there. It was whetted by the 2010 constitution which reduced leases from 999 years to 99 years. Locals led by their leaders saw this as an opportunity to get back the land they say current owners got from them when the country became a protectorate in 1895.

The British Empire had land ownership at its core. Remember the landed gentryand the fox hunters? The empire did not just rule over other people, it got their land and exploited it. Land appropriation, using laws alien to the conquered people, was one of the hallmarks of the British and other empires that chopped up Africa into manageable pieces at the end of 19th century.

A good example was mistaking land used by nomads as “empty.” And why not, which land in British Isles is free? The current clamour for plantations and ranches is an echo from that past.

Land has always been a sensitive issue in Kenya and globally. In countries such as Australia, USA and Canada, land taken from indigenous people is still contentious. Yet these countries are much older than Kenya.

The demand for land is not just because of the 2010 constitution. Population has grown over the years. At independence, our population was about nine million. We are now about 50 million. Such increase in population without commensurate rise in alternative occupations away from nature-tethered sectors like farming or fishing has put lots of pressure on available land.

In the countryside, farmers have tilled to the river bed leading to drying up of rivers and erosion. In the urban areas, any available land is under threat. Why else are we encroaching into forests and riparian lands?

The shortage of land is reflected by its rising price and the popularity of apartments. There is limitless space in the air subject to available technology. In both places, the drying up of rivers has led to a thriving business in chasing water underground through boreholes.

The other attraction for plantations and ranches, which few local leaders will admit, is that they are very well managed. Some have been in family hands for 100 years. They have benefited from the learning curve effect. Being privately owned means they are willing to be innovative.

Conservation

Have you seen how trees are growing fast on Kakuzi land on your way to Nyeri from Nairobi?  Can we appreciate the conservation efforts of Laikipia ranchers? The neighbours to Del Monte, Kakuzi, Taita conservancies and other large holdings have smaller farms that are uneconomical to run. They can’t use machines or technology. You can’t use a tractor on an acre of land. You can’t construct a dam on an acre of land.

There were many such large plantations and ranches in Kenya just before independence. Some of them were chopped up as late as 1980s.  The names of the former owners live on. Examples include Kaniki (Carnegie) off Nyahururu -Nyeri route, Kwa Mbegi (Begg) near Gilgil and many others.

Once we got our freedom, the farms were chopped up into small shambas which have now been subdivided further after the children of original owners matured. The tradition of subdividing land has persisted despite our rising literacy. Subdivision’s greatest driver is lack of alternatives. Inherited land is the only property lots of children will own. The fact that women can now inherit land doubles the demand.

The neighbours to these large pieces of land wish they could get part of it. They secretly admire the trees, the cattle and other developments. What would they do with that land? The leaders will quickly build schools and other public facilities. My hunch tells me the land will be subdivided and sold off, becoming uneconomical to exploit.

It is also possible that the most deserving cases will not get land.

Getting such land and subdividing it makes good politics, you get loyal voters who shall always be grateful to you. That is how some forests were degazetted, leading to change in voting patterns. But does it make economic sense?

There are good economic reasons for maintaining plantations despite the colonial connotation. My conversation with men and women who worked for mzungu has yielded some great insights into labour relations. Though paid low wages, workers got free food. How many companies today can give their workers free food?

One of the benefits that plantations or ranches provide is plenty of jobs, surprisingly even to those who “benefited” from the earlier subdivision of plantations and ranches. Some of the land we are seeking to own would be close to useless if subdivided, it is too dry. The plantations and ranches look attractive because they have been transformed by good management, irrigation and planting appropriate crops or maintaining land in its original form. It is like getting attracted by a beautiful woman transformed by her husband.

Two, plantations and ranches preserve part of our diversity. Visit some of the conservancies and see the diversity of animals and plants. Such is good for our planet already suffering from the opulent hand of man. Roger Whitaker in his song, “Make way for man” noted that man is the most destructive force there has ever been.

Three, plantations provide us with economic choices, they add diversity to our economy. A diversified economy is more resilient. In fact, Kenya might escape the oil curse because of this diversification. Four, plantations and ranches are land banks for future generations. There is not much you can do with Nairobi or Mombasa CBD but empty land can be put into so many uses. That is why empty land is so pricey! 

Five, we all dream of owning big pieces of land, ranches or plantations. If we do not own such pieces of land, we dream of making them our playgrounds like golf courses or national parks. Why should we support subdivision of large tracts of land? 

We have also been made to believe that any empty land should be put into use. What of the sentimental value? What is the value of your empty backyard or parks like uhuru park?  No wonder we wrongly think idle land should be taxed.

In addition, the clamour for land in a country where no one wants to be a farmer is driven by lack of alternatives. The leaders in the counties should be more concerned about attracting investors or awakening those within their jurisdictions to give their residents non-farm jobs. Subdividing land into small uneconomical pieces only benefits a few. In the long run, the subdivision often done with no regard to future developments and realities brings more problems than it solves. 

Again, land ownership does not lead to economic progress. If you doubt me, just visit the former white highlands after mzungu left. Who is richer, or more affluent, the mzungu who left or the new owners of the land? The mzungu who owned the land where my parents settled after indpendence had a plane, my dad owned a bicycle.

Factor of production

This is paradox of independence in Africa. In no way am I disrespecting the freedom fighters espoused by Mau Mau who ensured the white highlands became black eventually. I am just confronting the economic reality.

Land is also one of the four factors of production in addition to labour, capital and entrepreneurship. We should add management as the fifth factor of production. In Kenya we seem to think it’s the only factor. This thinking has held this country hostage. It’s time we set ourselves free. What do Japanese, Koreans or Singaporeans think about land?

Demanding land and alluding to historical injustice appears logical till you think deeper. How far into the past should we go? Should the original owners of Nairobi demand it? Should we return to Congo and demand our ancestral land there? The great tide of history carries everyone along, it is time we started coming to terms with it and its bad manners.

Finally, how comes we easily import ideas such as democracy but not modern thinking about land? Luckily the next generation is detaching itself from land. One young lady told me recently she is better off taking a holiday in London instead of buying a plot if she might never develop it. Does it mean on matters of land ordinary Kenyans are ahead of their leaders?

- The writer teaches at the University of Nairobi.