Tearfund Canada is supporting Fadhili Trust with a four-year agriculture and livelihoods project in Makueni County, Kenya. Erratic rainfall and soil infertility are major contributors to food insecurity as farmers struggle to produce enough crops to sustain year-round food needs. Years in which famine hits are the hardest if households do not have enough assets or stored food from previous years.
Farmers also struggle to purchase enough agriculture inputs to help boost crop yields and build food stocks to last year-round and through lean years. The aim of this project is to sustain food security year-round in good and bad years through village and savings loan associations (VSLAs). VSLAs provide opportunities for households to save and access loans at a minimum interest rate and build long term savings through group investments. The income earned will be used towards purchasing inputs and tools and provide extra income to purchase food during lean seasons.
The project aims to train 16 Village Agents who will lead these groups and train and monitor 240 groups with 6,000 members. The project will also promote kitchen gardens to supplement nutritious food sources. This will reduce the need for households to purchase extra vegetables, thereby saving income. In total the project will benefit approximately 27,700 individuals.