Kenya: Finance Lift for Drought Prone Kenya Livestock Farmers

livestock farmers

LOCAL livestock farmers enduring the worst drought in decades are set to access to training and credit facilities through a new programme stakeholders have launched.
Thousands of the farmers in Garissa, Isiolo, Marsabit Turkana and Wajir Counties are to benefit from the partnership involving Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) Foundation and Millennium Water Alliance (MWA).

This is under the Kenya Arid Lands Partnership for Integrated Development Program (Kenya RAPID), with funding from the United States Agency for International Development and Swiss Development Corporation. Jane Mwangi, KCB Foundation Executive Director, expressed optimism in productive and sustainable commercialised livestock as well as water sectors in the targeted counties.

"There is a great untapped potential in the counties. We believe this will contribute to an enhanced economic status for the households and the counties as a whole," she said. The programme, billed one of the most transformative, is expected to transform the lives of citizens. MWA Executive Director, Rafael Callejas, echoed the importance of the partnership. "We are looking at changing livelihoods through innovative business models. The small scale entrepreneurs will also have more opportunity for training on getting and managing credit," Callejas said.

Through this partnership, KCB Foundation will conduct financial literacy training of 100 small and medium enterprises in the livestock and water value chains. It aims to support pasture production, prepare water service providers and livestock keepers for commercial loans of up to US$ 1 million. This is in addition to sharing technologies and approaches in sustainable service delivery. Other private-sector partners include Aqua for All, The Coca-Cola Africa Foundation, SweetSense, Acacia Water, IBM, Davis & Shirtliff and Vitol Foundation.