• Kenya plans tea export deal with Algeria, discussed at UN summit.
• Part of effort to diversify markets beyond top 10 buyers.
• Algeria's tea market is dominated by China, posing entry challenge.

Kenya's Agriculture Minister Mutahi Kagwe met his Algerian counterpart for Foreign Trade, Kamel Rezig, to discuss adding Algeria as a tea export market. The meeting took place on the sidelines of the second United Nations Food Systems Summit (UNFSS+4), held July 27-29 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

During their meeting, discussions focused on an upcoming memorandum of understanding designed to strengthen trade cooperation and facilitate market access between the two nations, local media outlet Citizen Digital reported.

This development follows East Africa's leading economy announcing in May its intention to enter new markets. The move aims to increase and diversify Kenya's tea exports beyond traditional outlets.

Currently, nearly 85% of Kenya's annual tea exports go to just ten countries: Pakistan, Egypt, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Sudan, Russia, Yemen, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, and Saudi Arabia.

While gaining access to the Algerian market aligns with Kenya's tea sector export growth ambitions, it may prove challenging. Trademap data shows Algeria imported 15,000 metric tons of tea worth nearly $54 million in 2024. Almost all of this, 91%, came from China.

Nairobi's initiative to facilitate Algerian market access for tea also includes other strategic agricultural products such as coffee and milk. Tea remains Kenya’s primary agricultural export. In 2024, tea shipments generated 181.69 billion shillings ($1.4 billion) in revenue, according to the Tea Board of Kenya (TBK).

Stéphanas Assocle