Project Location
There are 140 households involved. Participants are predominately (80%) low-income female farmers. Conditions are extremely dry, just like in Kambu. The size of land that the households own vary from 0.25 – 49 acres, however, the average size of land holding is 3.03 acres.. Farmers take copious notes during training workshops and immediately implement technologies they find useful (e.g. when told that plastic bottles can be used for plant irrigation, all plastic bottles “disappeared” after the workshop and were promptly used without any additional training).
Motorised public transport is rare. Nearly 72% of the households are located at 1km to 5km (0.6mi to 3.1mi) away from the nearest market, i.e. a bicycle distance. Farmers used to travel an average of 4km (2.5mi) to fetch water but CSTI successfully introduced sand dams, drip irrigation and shallow wells in order to alleviate this problem. Seed quality was enhanced by supplying farmers with certified seeds from the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) http://www.kari.org/
A paper handbook (distributed for free) was developed which allows farmers to train themselves on proper planting, rotation, pest management, harvesting & storage. The main food crops grown prior to CSTI’s involvement were maize (60%); beans (60%); pigeon peas (37.3%); and green peas (37.3%). Sorghum despite its drought resistance characteristics was only grown by 13.3% of the households as a food crop. The most significant cash crops that were grown included maize (48%) and sorghum (26.7%).
After CSTI’s involvement, sorghum production has doubled and some groups of farmers also ventured into fruit trees because they could easily make value added products (such as jams and sweets) from the fruits. Another source of income was through seed bulking and selling quality seeds back to KARI.
You can download a project summary here. Case Study written for Canadian Coalition on Climate Change & Development
Background Information:
Kenya has a highly diverse mix of ethnic groups each with distinct language, cultural norms, diets, traditions, etc. It is estimated there are up to 75 distinct languages in the country. Despite constant media portrayal of tensions and conflict between ethnic groups in Kenya, most of the groups co-exist together quite peacefully. Data being gathered by the International Criminal Court (ICC) is proving that most of the 2007-2008 post-election violence was more due to carefully orchestrated political instigation than actual inherent conflict between groups.
Makueni is traditionally home to those of the Kamba group. They are among the 4 largest groups in Kenya and you can learn more about Kenyan demographics here.) If you have never visited Kenya or are unfamiliar with the country, Wikipedia provides a quick reference summary.
As is the case with many parts of Kenya, food security is a critical issue. Climate change and drought have adversely impacted farmers' ability to product. Here is a 2006 FAO food security report.
Area Map
Source: United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Data from StateMaster Encyclopedia:
Makueni District is an administrative district in the Eastern Province of Kenya. Its capital town is Wote. The district has a population of 771,545 (1999 census) and an area of 7,966 sq km [1]. The district has five constituencies: Mbooni, Kilome, Kaiti, Makueni and Kibwezi.
| Local authorities (councils) | ||||
| Authority | Type | Population* | Urban pop.* | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wote | Town | 56,419 | 5,542 | |
| Mtito Andei | Town | 24,435 | 4,304 | |
| Makueni | County | 690,691 | 18,689 | |
| Total | - | 771,545 | 28,535 | |
| * 1999 census. Source: [2] | ||||
| Administrative divisions | |||
| Division | Population* | Urban pop.* | Headquarters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kaiti | 46,107 | 501 | Kilala |
| Kalawa | 14,039 | 0 | Kalawa |
| Kasikeu | 35,719 | 1,848 | Kasikeu |
| Kathonzweni | 65,738 | 0 | Kathonzweni |
| Kibwezi | 80,236 | 4,695 | Kibwezi |
| Kilome | 46,204 | 0 | |
| Kilungu | 67,741 | 0 | |
| Kisau | 50,510 | 1,905 | |
| Makindu | 50,299 | 2,482 | Makindu |
| Matiliku | 38,867 | 0 | Matiliku |
| Mbitini | 48,729 | 3,266 | Emali |
| Mbooni | 55,984 | 1,786 | Mbooni |
| Mtito Andei | 66,663 | 3,966 | Mtito Andei |
| Tulimani | 32,717 | 0 | |
| Wote | 40,353 | 4,708 | Wote |
| Total | 771,545 | 25,157 | - |
| * 1999 census. Sources: [3], [4], | |||