KENYA
Live Streaming at Auction
Authorized tea sector stakeholders now have access to ‘real time’ information from the Mombasa tea auction center following the launch of a live streaming service set up by the East African Tea Trade Association (EATTA). Following poor tea prices last year when farmers did not reduce production as advised, EATTA has set up a live relay of the Mombasa auctions to increase efficiency and transparency ahead of the introduction of electronic auctions expected to be introduced in April next year. The new system will provide instantaneous data visualization and analysis, automated data warehousing and historical achieving, quick and efficient post-auction reconciliation, and world-class auction floor operations. In June this year, President Uhuru Kenyatta called for the fast tracking of an electronic tea auction in Mombasa through a public-private partnership to improve transparency and efficiency. At the moment, the live transaction is only offered through CFC Stanbic Bank but EATTA is also finalizing the integration of Equity and Citi banks to the tea sales payment system that was introduced in 2010. Kenya will be the second country after India to introduce online auctions.