Meagre tea bonuses fuel concerns over twilight girls and exploitation in Kisii towns

And as soon as the bonus hit mobile money accounts, residents have raised concerns over a familiar but growing problem: the reported increase in the number of young women and girls engaging in transactional sex in the region, hoping to get a share of the money spent by male bar patrons.

From Magena to Kenyenya, from Marani to Tabaka and Keumbu, the pattern is reportedly the same. As farmers stream into centres to withdraw their bonus money, bars that sell cheap beer fill up from as early as 2 p.m. And alongside the music and the cheap liquor, a growing number of young, vulnerable girls — some reportedly still in their teens — appear. They are not there to sell tea. They are there to survive, hoping to get a share of the little bonus money from farmers who have been drinking.

This is not a moral judgment on the farmers. It is a cry about poverty meeting poverty.

The farmer is broke. After a year of plucking in the cold and rain, carrying leaves to the buying centre, he gets less than Sh20,000 for his sweat. Frustrated, he walks into a bar to drown his disappointment. The girl on the other side is even more broke. She dropped out of Form Two because her parents could not raise Sh5,000 for fees. She has no job, no skills and a child at home to feed. She was told by a friend that she could make Sh500 a night serving men in a bar. She enters the bar not knowing that she is entering a trap.

The business model is simple and cruel. Cheap beer brings in many male patrons. The presence of young girls keeps those patrons drinking longer. The bar owner, who may be an employed person, including a teacher running the bar through a manager, counts his profits and looks away. The farmer loses his bonus. The girl risks her life.

The dangers are real. In the rush for quick money after bonus payments, protection may be forgotten. The risks of HIV, sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and unintended pregnancy are serious. Violence is another concern — a farmer who has consumed cheap liquor throughout the day can turn violent. Some of these girls may end up pregnant, infected or struggling with alcohol dependence, with limited opportunities to return to school.

Residents are now asking hard questions. Is it right that the little money from KTDA that should take a child to school is the same money fuelling the exploitation of another child? Is it right that while we complain about low tea bonuses, we allow a bar economy that exploits the daughters of the same tea farmers?

The County Government of Kisii must see this as more than a moral issue. It is an economic and public health concern. It must regulate the sale of cheap alcohol in all tea-growing zones, enforce strict licensing and child protection laws to ensure no girl under 18 is employed in any bar in Magena, Kenyenya, Marani, Tabaka or Keumbu, and hold bar owners accountable for unlawful activities on their premises.

The national government and KTDA must also address the root cause. If tea bonuses remain meagre, farmers will remain frustrated and trading centres will remain fertile ground for exploitation. Better returns for tea, timely payments and meaningful youth empowerment funds that reach girls at the village level will help keep girls in school and reduce their vulnerability to exploitation.