“Most of these factories are underperforming and heavily indebted while two are under receivership,” the statement said, referring to the sugar millers Miwani, Nzoia, Muhoroni, Chemelil and Sony.
The five companies are in urgent need of modernisation to survive an expected onslaught following the licensing of four new sugar producers and as Kenya removes import safeguards in 2012.
The statement did not give a timeline for the privatisation but said farmers would have an opportunity to buy the shares as individuals or as part of cooperatives.
The government planned to offload 51 percent to strategic investors and another 30 percent to farmers, Agriculture Minister William Ruto said in January.
It costs Kenyan millers $550 to produce a tonne of sugar compared with a regional average of $350, according to the Kenya Sugar Board.
Source: Reuters
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