Empower 175 students for food security in Kenya

In Kachiuru primary the progress is impressive as the school continue growing each and every day.  The headteacher of Kachiuru is happy to head a school with improved pupils’ population unlike before.  Feeding program in the school has created a big impact in the community and at least the school now has various structures to create conducive learning environment.  They still have shortage of classroom desks and at the moment pupils are sharing the available desks.   They also require more classrooms as the school population is growing and they are optimistic that they will continue enrolling more pupils.  The school management is pushing the government to support them in provision of desks and more classrooms also.  We are happy that the school is progressing on well and we pray and hope for more development in the school.  Thank you to all for your generous contributions.

Our beneficiaries and their families are proceeding on well despite the harsh weather conditions in various parts.  It has been dry for a while and most farmers lost their crops due to shortage of rains and especially the short period crops which were heavily affected.  The farmers are now happy as it is now raining heavily and their crops will improve as they plant new ones.  We were able to conduct training on value addition to encourage our beneficiaries to add value to their products when they are in plenty.  We also encouraged them to continue visiting youth polytechnics that we are working with as they are around them and there are much more to learn from them.   We will continue building their capacity to ensure good progress as well as training them to become trainers to benefit others.  This project has been very successful and our beneficiaries really appreciate the support given to them and especially on health and nutrition considering their status.  They also appreciate the income generating activities that we have helped them achieve either from their kitchen gardens, small livestock, table banking and small businesses and they thank all those who have walked with them all through.  We will continue supporting them for more achievements as we fundraise for more projects that will benefit them and the community directly.  Thank you all for your support to this far and the far that we intend to get with our beneficiaries.

Our agribusiness clubs are progressing on well in various youth polytechnics. We have learnt that most clubs have increased in membership as many students have developed interest towards the project. This is very encouraging since we are assured of project sustainability as many students joining the polytechnics for the first time are as well joining the clubs. Since some of them will be finishing their courses at some point, there is good assurance that the project will be sustainable.
As earlier mentioned the students were preparing their gardens in readiness for planting during the long rains starting in April. They planted their gardens but since some polytechnics don’t have water harvesting structures, their crops were affected by dry spell since the rains were not very heavy and did not continue for long as expected. Those with waters harvesting structures took advantages of the rain and harvested some water which they used for irrigation. Most of them were able to produce some vegetables which they sold to the school for feeding program. The others have tried to irrigate their gardens with students carrying water from their homes it’s not easy but at least they have saved some crops. We expect some rains soon and many clubs are ready to plant when the rains come. We are happy that the students are not getting discouraged but instead they are trying to solve the challenges they are facing each and every day. We will give them some planting seeds and organic fertilizer to plant when it rains to continue encouraging them. Thank you all for your great support.

I take this opportunity to thank all those who have considered contributing for this youth project. The project has added a lot of value to our youth as they are now appreciating agriculture in different angles. They are developing more interest towards agribusiness and sustainable agriculture which is very positive. This year started well with some unexpected rains in early January which really improved the crops in the gardens. Most students had planted crops in November and they were able to nurture them during their long holiday in December and after they reported back in January their gardens were very green. They were able to sell their vegetables to the school for the lunch program and the demand was a bit high since there were no plenty vegetables in the market. At the moment they are preparing their gardens for planting during the long rains in April. We have tried to source different seeds for different youth polytechnics for diversity and since some of them were lucky to get water harvesting structures and water tank, they will utilize the rains by harvesting enough water to use even when the rains subsidize. The clubs is attracting more members who are developing interest towards the project and they have actually learned a lot of skills and knowledge and appreciating that they can employ themselves once they are through with their courses without waiting to be employed. The youths are also sharing their knowledge and skills with their surrounding communities and their school gardens are demonstration farms for the community. Again we thank all those who have contributed towards the success of this project and encourage them to continue supporting the project

The dry spell prolonged more than it was expected and all school gardens were affected as students watering their crops carrying from their homes was not sustainable since water was also scarce in their homes. They didn’t have choice but to wait for the rains and fortunately in October there were some good rains and they were able to do water harvesting. They have now reestablished their gardens and they have new crops at the moment and they are optimistic that they will enjoy good harvest next year. The rains have continued and they have enough water for January when the dry spell begins and they are excited to have their own water tanks now with water not only for watering their gardens but also for general use in the school.
We are still fundraising for more water harvesting structures, simple irrigation kits and seeds for the other schools. Although students are on holiday, they have allocated duties among themselves to take care of their school gardens. We are happy that students are owning these projects thus confident of sustainability and change of the negative attitude towards farming/agriculture in general We will continue fundraising for this project and we thank all our well wishers for their kind contribution and we encourage and invite others to consider supporting this youth project. Be blessed all.