New Age Farming
Farming is an old age activity practiced by many communities. Western Kenya region boasts of this because of the conducive weather conditions that help support farming. Many families have relied on farming as a source of livelihood with a number of students learning needs facilitated by farming proceeds after sale of produces.
With the revolutions in our society, farming has remained the revolution that is yet to be forgotten even now in technology revolution. Change is inevitable as we look how we practice farming. Maize farmers for example have to embrace new technologies in order to remain relevant in their activity. Maize is the most important staple food crop in Kenya. Maize is also a major business crop and fulfils the two roles of food and cash for a majority of farmers.
With proper reforms in place, the maize industry will become a key element in accelerating growth and reducing poverty. However, poor rains, a reduction in planting after the 2008 post-election violence, and a decrease in fertilizer application due to higher prices have resulted in lower harvest yields for smallholder farmers.
The starting of programs that can help farmers understand and engage in better farming activity provides them with a platform to share and learn from others on how to improve and register better yields. The Kenya Maize Development Program (KMDP) currently in its seventh year boosts household incomes by raising productivity, improving the effectiveness of smallholder organizations and increasing access to agricultural markets and business support services.
The KMDP initiated project-designed training course in farming as a family business which teaches producers to adopt a commercial approach to their farming activities. Farming as a family business module is currently in development and will assist smallholder families in adopting these commercial approaches so that they may improve their standard of living. The training provides practical information on how to use improved varieties of seed and fertilizer, conservation tillage and other natural resource management practices. They provide practical on-farm training and also train farmers to better market their crop through organized markets systems.
To this extend it has led to dramatic growth in smallholder productivity brought about by improving farmer business management, tailoring input distribution specifically for smallholders (new types and smaller packages), and bulk purchases and marketing through groups. Smallholder farmers are learning to adhere to international quality and linking directly with private sector business development services.
A major problem for smallholder farmers is the lack of access to timely and accurate market information. To address this problem, KMDP established a network of market information centers that serve as locations for prices and trade information within local and regional markets. Through these centers, buyers are able to post purchase bids while farmers can review offers and sell their stocks to buyers. KMDP also strives to provide farmers and agribusinesses with access to new and improved technologies. Kenyan farmers have been able to take advantage of the widespread use of mobile phones to acquire quick and accurate information through the short messaging system (SMS). This system allows users to receive as text messages the prevailing market prices for various products within several markets. The system also enables farmers to receive weather alerts and regular extension messages on production practices. By using SMS, farmers can avoid exploitation by middlemen, who have historically taken advantage of uninformed farmers by offering lower-than-market prices.
With the revolutions in our society, farming has remained the revolution that is yet to be forgotten even now in technology revolution. Change is inevitable as we look how we practice farming. Maize farmers for example have to embrace new technologies in order to remain relevant in their activity. Maize is the most important staple food crop in Kenya. Maize is also a major business crop and fulfils the two roles of food and cash for a majority of farmers.
With proper reforms in place, the maize industry will become a key element in accelerating growth and reducing poverty. However, poor rains, a reduction in planting after the 2008 post-election violence, and a decrease in fertilizer application due to higher prices have resulted in lower harvest yields for smallholder farmers.
The starting of programs that can help farmers understand and engage in better farming activity provides them with a platform to share and learn from others on how to improve and register better yields. The Kenya Maize Development Program (KMDP) currently in its seventh year boosts household incomes by raising productivity, improving the effectiveness of smallholder organizations and increasing access to agricultural markets and business support services.
The KMDP initiated project-designed training course in farming as a family business which teaches producers to adopt a commercial approach to their farming activities. Farming as a family business module is currently in development and will assist smallholder families in adopting these commercial approaches so that they may improve their standard of living. The training provides practical information on how to use improved varieties of seed and fertilizer, conservation tillage and other natural resource management practices. They provide practical on-farm training and also train farmers to better market their crop through organized markets systems.
To this extend it has led to dramatic growth in smallholder productivity brought about by improving farmer business management, tailoring input distribution specifically for smallholders (new types and smaller packages), and bulk purchases and marketing through groups. Smallholder farmers are learning to adhere to international quality and linking directly with private sector business development services.
A major problem for smallholder farmers is the lack of access to timely and accurate market information. To address this problem, KMDP established a network of market information centers that serve as locations for prices and trade information within local and regional markets. Through these centers, buyers are able to post purchase bids while farmers can review offers and sell their stocks to buyers. KMDP also strives to provide farmers and agribusinesses with access to new and improved technologies. Kenyan farmers have been able to take advantage of the widespread use of mobile phones to acquire quick and accurate information through the short messaging system (SMS). This system allows users to receive as text messages the prevailing market prices for various products within several markets. The system also enables farmers to receive weather alerts and regular extension messages on production practices. By using SMS, farmers can avoid exploitation by middlemen, who have historically taken advantage of uninformed farmers by offering lower-than-market prices.
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