More market power for Kenya's farmers
Since 2015, some 15,000 farmers have been joining forces to form groups and practice collective marketing.
©FAO/Christena Dowsett / UNFAO
More and more farmers in some of the poorest areas of southern and central Kenya are working their land and selling their produce as a group, based on agreements with buyers.
This way of farming gives poor farmers more negotiating and market power, and helps them better plan what and how much to grow. They also have a clear idea of their produce’s price and best time to sell it.
Since 2015, some 15,000 farmers have been joining forces to form groups and practice collective marketing. Each group has 15-30 farmers, and a few farmers’ groups constitute a community-based organization (CBO), which is normally registered with the county government.
A ten-fold increase in sorghum production
“We came together so that we can meet our challenges. We realized we were making no profit from our farming. We learnt this new way of farming through the project and we are now expanding from one to four acres; some even to 20 acres,” said Purity Gatiria Njeru, head of one of the farmers’ groups in Tharaka Nithi county.