From the early period of Japan’s assistance to Kenya, which started in 1964, we have attached special importance to food security and agriculture.
In Kenya, agriculture accounts for about 22 per cent of GDP and 70 per cent of the rural employed population. Taking a multi-faceted approach, our cooperation covers various aspects such as irrigation infrastructure, improving agricultural output through better techniques and research, promotion of market-oriented agriculture, and strengthening resilience against droughts.
I would also add that Goal 2 of United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) aims to end hunger, achieve food security, improve nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture by 2030. In line with this Goal, the Government of Kenya is striving to achieve 100 per cent food security by 2030. Clearly, attaining these objectives requires a multi-faceted approach.
In October 2022, I witnessed President Ruto officially commission the Thiba Dam in Kirinyaga county. The construction of the dam was a highlight in the history of Japan’s assistance to the Mwea Irrigation Scheme that started in 1989. The dam, together with the extension of the irrigation canals network, is expected to expand the irrigated area by 2,000 hectares and enable double cropping, thereby contributing to dramatic increase in local rice production.
In parallel, Japan has been providing support for developing rice cultivation techniques for saving water and increasing yields since 2012. In addition, the Japanese International Cooperation Agency, JICA, has worked with the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation, KALRO, in Mwea to develop new rice varieties suited to the local environment. These projects succeeded in increasing rice harvest in the Mwea Irrigation Scheme by a whopping 260 per cent from 57,000 tonnes (2010) to 148,000 tonnes (2021). Currently, the same support is under way in the Western Kenya, where the techniques are customised to the unique conditions of the region.
In this connection, boosting rice production will help Kenya reduce its reliance on imported rice and save foreign currency. Currently, due to the huge gap between domestic production and demand, Kenya imports about 671,000 tonnes of rice in 2022, amounting to about US$288 million.
The scope of our cooperation on rice production has a regional dimension too, as Kenya is hosting the secretariat of the Coalition for African Rice Development. This is an initiative launched by JICA in 2008 to promote doubling of rice production in Sub-Saharan Africa. CARD is now in its second phase, striving to achieve annual continental rice production of 56 million tonnes by 2030 up from 28 million tonnes with a target of 846,000 tonnes of milled rice in Kenya.
It goes without saying that application of science is important in promoting agriculture. In 1985, JICA and Kenya Agriculture Research Institute worked on growing macadamia nuts. This research led to commercial production and export of macadamia nuts to Japan and the US by Kenya Nuts, a local company founded by a Japanese.
Japan continues to support Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology and indeed has been doing so since before its full establishment in 1977. As a result of our cooperation in terms of infrastructure and human capacity development, and with an emphasis on practical learning, this leading academic institution has provided numerous solutions to increase harvest for Kenya.
Potatoes are the second most important crop in Kenya, and the last five years have seen concentrated research efforts in the Potato Value Chain. Through the collaboration with the Fujita Corporation, a Japanese private company, JKUAT is working with the stakeholders in Nyandarua to disseminate the knowledge on the ground.
In Kenya and in many other countries, small scale-farmers have difficulty selling their produce at a higher price and increasing their incomes due to lack of knowledge and business skills. In order to address this gap, JICA and the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development have worked together to promote market-oriented agriculture among the small-scale farmers through training in several phases since 2006.
The project, named SHEP (Smallholder Horticulture Empowerment and Promotion), has been implemented initially in selected subcounties in Bungoma, Trans Nzoia, Nyandarua and Kisii; later, it expanded to 20 counties mainly along the Northern Corridor.
Through training by extension workers, the smallholders’ mindset changed from “grow and sell” to “grow to sell”. The effectiveness of SHEP has already been verified by scientific studies, which underline its extraordinary success. On average, the beneficiary farmers’ income more than doubled. I visited beneficiary farmers in Kitui who said their income increased by at least two times, in some cases as much as 10 times, allowing them to improve their housing, buy electric generators, and send their children to school.
Based on such demonstrated successes, JICA has been funding the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development to provide third-country training to officials from Africa, Asia and South America. We appreciate the cooperation of the Kenyan Government in hosting these trainings for the other countries.
Unfortunately, the uptake in Kenya is limited.
Although individual counties with support from the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock are expected to promote this approach using their own resources, not enough progress has been made.
It is my sincere hope that all interested governors can see for themselves the results of this project in implemented areas and introduce the SHEP Approach in their own Counties.
Strengthening resilience against climate change such as successive droughts, will be increasingly important in coming years. Through JICA, we have provided support for resilience through such activities as developing and planting water-saving varieties of crops in semi-arid areas, including Turkana; water resource management including wells; and livestock value chain development. In addition, support is currently being provided for improved nutrition through schools in Turkana and Kitui counties.
Looking to the future, I see new areas for expanding our cooperation and one of them is the collaboration with the Japanese private sector.
Recently, JICA had an expert on mechanisation in the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, and several Japanese companies are seeking to promote agricultural machinery in Kenya. This interest has been enhanced by activities of AFICAT (Africa Field Innovation Centre for Agricultural Technology) that continues to showcase relevant advanced Japanese agricultural technologies and create linkage with local market in the country. Introduction of such reliable and durable Japanese agricultural machinery will go a long way in increasing productivity in various value chains.
Based on its own experience, Japan believes in providing support to promote self-reliance of the recipient countries.
Kenya has been a great partner in this regard as illustrated by Kenyan institutions able to practice knowhow accumulated as a result of cooperation with Japan, and further providing support to other countries.
I look forward to working together with my Kenyan counterparts to make a difference for the food security and agriculture in Kenya and other countries.
The writer is Japanese Ambassador to Kenya