Through the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, the Government of Kenya launched the second phase of a digital platform to facilitate the registration of farmers for effective service delivery and improved agricultural productivity.

The CS Hon. Mithika Linturi said the Kenya Integrated Agriculture Management Information System (KIAMIS) is an innovative digital platform that, apart from registering farmers, will also provide e-extension, credit management, and mechanization services by the Government and counties. He also noted that the results of the pilot, which was done in Uasin Gishu and Nyandarua have shown the system's versatility and hence the current upscale.

During the launch, the Swedish Government announced a USD 5.2 million grant to support the implementation of the second phase. The Swedish Ambassador to Kenya, H.E Caroline Vicini, reiterated the solid support for agriculture by the Embassy. She lauded the collaboration between the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Kenya government that yielded a successful pilot now being up scaled to all regions. "Our farmers need timely information to make the right decisions. This platform will address this problem and help our farmers’ access farming inputs and markets for their produce." She said.

Carla Mucavi, FAO Representative in Kenya, noted the significant contribution of information technology to agricultural production. She said KIAMIS will support effective and efficient service delivery and boost agricultural food production, which is currently being negatively affected by climate change.

Also present during the launch was Assistant FAO Representative –Programmes Hamisi Williams and Annika Otterstedt - Head of Development Cooperation; Swedish Embassy Nairobi. The PS State Department of Crop Development Kello Harsama, Director of Veterinary Services – Dr. Obadiah Njagi, and other senior government officials.

The goal is to create a comprehensive national farmer registry where national government, counties and projects can leverage farmer and farm data, allowing better data-driven decisions for policy makers.

FAO envisions the KIAMIS Platform as the central facilitator of access, sharing, and utilization of information to improve farmer livelihoods and agricultural performance for various stakeholders across the farming ecosystem. The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development and Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) will implement the project collaboratively.

For more information contact

Dr. Joseph Othieno

National Communications Specialist

FAO Kenya

Email: [email protected]