Nyandarua farmers to benefit from Sh750m value addition project

The future looks bright for Nyandarua farmers, who took a risk in 2021 and diversified from traditional farming practices into climate-smart agriculture.

Their resilience and success is also a blessing to other small-scale farmers, who are set to benefit from phase two of a World Bank and Nyandarua County-funded agribusiness and agro-processing programme

The World Bank is investing in agro-processing — the process of converting agricultural products into finished goods such as food, beverages, textiles, and pharmaceuticals —  and farm produce marketing interventions, mainly through value addition, after the success of phase one of the programme, which focused on improved production through diversification of farming practices guided by climate and weather patterns

In the project under the World Bank-funded Kenya Climate Smart Agriculture (KCSAP), the farmers diversified from traditional potatoes —  the main cash crop in Nyandarua — to climate-friendly practices for growing potatoes and pyrethrum. Those from drier areas in Kipipiri and Ndaragua ventured into poultry and dairy farming.

The farmers adopted new climatic-friendly potato varieties such as Manitou, which they cultivated using climate-adaptive growing practices such as moisture conservation, soil erosion control methods, among others.

Those in dairy farming adopted recommended breeds, fodder growing, and conservation; also guided by climate factors and documented individual area weather patterns.

After three years, the desired results were achieved by a huge number of the target beneficiaries, a success that created another challenge —  the marketing concept.This necessitated phase two of the programme.

“We embraced climate-smart agriculture due to perennial crop failure resulting from vagaries of weather as well as potato diseases and pests. However, the success of the diversification has created another big challenge that was not factored in phase one —  the marketing concept. Farmers have increased potato, milk and egg production, but they don’t have a reliable market, exposing us to exploitative brokers.

“However, we are now optimistic as phase two addresses the marketing concept, with more focus on processing and value addition,” says Ms Margaret Njoki, a farmer from Githioro, Kinangop.

She is among the beneficiaries of the five-year Sh750 million programme funded by the World Bank, the county government and the national government under the National Agriculture Value Chain Development Project (NAVCDP) 

The funds are meant to support smallholder farmers in the agri-processing and marketing of five value-chain agricultural produce  , namely pyrethrum, dairy farming, poultry keeping, Irish potatoes and snow peas. 

Though the biggest beneficiaries are small-scale farmers under the just-ended World Bank-funded Kenya Climate Smart Agriculture Project, phase two covers all farmers facing marketing challenges in the region. 

Ms Njoki, who started with 30 improved kienyeji chickens, notes that she now owns 300, but she has no reliable market for eggs. 

“I am a member of Hope Farmers Mawingu, which benefited from the KCSAP funding. The group had 30 members, who all succeeded in the poultry project, but a number of them gave up due to an unreliable market. NAVCDP has come at the right time. With the funding, we plan to set up an aggregation centre under a cooperative society to make marketing easier. I am encouraged to increase the number of chickens to 1,000 in two years.” 

Mr John Gichuki, Nyandarua Livestock Development assistant director, explains that poultry farmers' exploitation is a big challenge. “A famer can earn a profit of Sh3 per egg.” 

Mr Samuel Kuria, a farmer from Kipipiri who benefitted from the Irish potato project, also cites an unstable market and exploitation by brokers. 

 “With NAVCDP, we plan to engage in value addition, which will guarantee us better prices. We are currently undergoing training at Njabini Agricultural Training College on diverse skills in value addition, business and finance management.”

 The two farmers are among 250 smallholder model farmers undergoing a one-month extensive training at the college. 

The group will be critical in mobilising and training at least 100, 000 farmers under the NAVCDP programme. 

 County Agriculture Chief Officer Samuel Gitaka explains that the funding model will be implemented under the co-operative movement so as to reach more farmers. 

 Mr Paul Karanja, NAVCDP coordinator, says the programme will be implemented under the community-driven development committee members currently undergoing the training. “The main focus is agri-processing for the export market. Snow peas are also included in the value chain,” said Mr Karanja. 

 Governor Kiarie Badilisha said: “The main aim of the programme is to end farmers’ exploitation for lack of markets. Our main target is the export market, especially for some of the value chains like pyrethrum and potato.” 

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