PACJA donates sunflower seeds to farmers in push for food security

The Kenyan government has promised to support small-holder farmers in their endeavors to fight food – https://edaslav.com/ insecurity, especially with the recent Covid-19 pandemic that has left many reeling in the effects of an unprecedented economic recession.

Speaking in Meru yesterday as the guest at the launch of a Tujiinue Tena project in which the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA) and Bidco Oil Company distributed at least 2 tonnes of sunflower seeds to small-holder farmers, Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya said environmental conservation was key in ensuring food security as well as safety for the biodiversity.

“To sustain our environment, the government, from the Office of the President, has sent me with a cheque to enable these residents to dig boreholes. I have actually launched one borehole today at Athiru Gaiti and the other one will be built at Mulika to enable those people to get more water,” said Munya.

PACJA Executive Director Mithika Mwenda, speaking at the same event, called on the national government to assist small-holder farmers to satisfy the growing population’s food and nutrition needs locally, and further contribute in the country’s economy through exports.

Dr Mwenda said climate change had threatened food security in Kenya and the rest of the world, but also presented an opportunity for small-holder farmers to make money through agri-business.

The project is part of a partnership between PACJA and Bidco, and will also focus on training of farmers as well as helping map out the best places to grow the sunflower, for which Bidco has offered a ready market.

“There will be a ready market for the sunflower. We shall be buying the product for you. We have been importing it from Malawi and Tanzania and because we want to create employment opportunity to our people, we have incorporated with PACJA to bring this crop here for you,” said the Bidco Company representative at the event Patel Shailesh.
Mr Munya said more boreholes would be dug to provide water for irrigation and construction of Ura Dam along the Ura River.

The Alliance bought at least 1.9 tonnes of the sunflower seeds from Kenya Seed Company, which added to the initiative another 200kg, all which were distributed to farmers at the event yesterday.

“With Covid-19, we learnt the role agribusiness can play in an economy. Food is a basic need that cannot be postponed, and those who had food felt safer when the pandemic hit. Those who had extra shared or sold to those who needed,” said Mithika at the event held in Kanuni ACC, in Igembe South.
The climate and Covid-19 crises have brought the SMEs, like those that fall under agro-industries, which also depend on nature for production, to their knees. Because of climate change, unpredictable rain patterns are messing farmers and food production countrywide, especially in arid and semi-arid areas.
Yesterday, the Bidco and PACJA teams mentioned separately that the problems faced by SMEs and small-holder farmers in Kenya were replicated in the rest of African continent, whose population continues to grow at a rate of 3 per cent per annum.

According to statistics, Africa is therefore forced to import food at a cost of $35 billion dollars every year.
In Kenya, alone, a Kenya Institute for Public Policy Research Analysis report released in March 2020 showed that food insecurity affected at least 14.5 million Kenyans every single year, with children under age five being some of the worst affected, as the years between 2014 and 2018 saw a lot of them exhibit stunted growth.
Mwenda said this offered opportunity for farmers in the Meru region, “a land blessed with good soils and some dependable rain” to satisfy the “growing population food and nutrition needs locally” through agri-business that also supports environmental conservation.

The worry of a small-holder farmer today is palpable. If you ask me, many, even in the largely rich lands of Meru, are not getting the best of returns from their investments.
He urged the government to help farmers enhance their access to information, appropriate technology, business models for increased scales of production and other means of production, “including land, capital and mainly market for produce”.

He said that would help farmers to think outside the box. “I urge the national government to give this region the attention it deserves, even if it means partnering with foreign entities. Farmers need aid to get the best rewards for their hard work and play their role in poverty reduction and food security”.