Our Projects
We began in 2005 working with less than 10 farmers. From
that initial research, it was evident that Kenya has many
blessings and is quite suitable for farming. What seemed to
be missing was financing and organization to enable
farmers to work together and make the most profit.
Planting Faith strives to put these two features in place for
the farmers. The groups are organized for production and
marketing of the same crop which enables them to
maximize savings and profits.
Farming is not without challenges, and Planting Faith
remains in a mentor relationship with the farmer groups to
see them through the challenges of weather, marketing and
financing. Business classes are held with the farmers
which help them to seek solutions to the many challenges
they face.
Currently, Planting Faith has worked with approximately
500 farmers in 8 communities within the Central Province
of Kenya. These 8 projects are part of two regions of
Christian Community Services (CCS), a development
organization within the Anglican Church of Kenya. CCS
helps us to mobilize the community to organize the groups.
In 2007, the Mount Kenya Region of CCS we started four
projects: Mang'u, Murang'a, Ngare Ndare and Kabete.
These projects have shown various degrees of success and
challenges. We have learned much from the process of our
initial expansion and are seeking ways to improve upon our
programs.
The group in Murang'a planted passion fruit and suffered
from challenges with group formation and crop production.
After evaluating the challenges in this community, we are in
the process of reforming the group and beginning to begin
a new pilot project in the next few months (Fall 2009).
More details will follow.
The group in Mang'u has produced passion fruit and was
exporting their produce for the European market in later
2008. Due to the worldwide Economic slowdown, they are
now finding that selling within the local market in Nairobi is
more successful. It has been exciting to watch them
develop these markets and successfully sell each week.
Currently, some farmers continue to sell in Nairobi, and we
expect the number to increase with the coming rains. This
group has also received training in other crops which they
plan to plant using their own capitol as well as training on
how to form small scale informal savings and credit groups.
The group in Kabete continues to produce Bird of Paradise
flowers, but due to the lack of rain, they have not begun
selling as a group. They hope to begin group selling
shortly after the October rains. In the meantime, Planting
Faith has begun training the group on how to form a small
scale informal savings and credit scheme.
The group in Ngare Ndare has also experienced challenges.
They started with a cut flower product called Moby Dick,
and they had difficulty making the crop meet export
specifications. Unfortunately, for that flower there is no
local market. They have reorganized and planted butternut
squash after doing some initial local market research.
Planting Faith has assisted them with the research, with a
financing of the loan, and with helping the group start
saving together as a group. They expect to harvest in late
October.
In the Mount Kenya East Region of CCS, we have four new
projects. Two of these farmer groups are growing
sunflowers, and two are growing aloe vera. These are new
projects which have begun in January 2009.
The Kirinyaga and Mbeere groups continue to tend their
aloe vera, with all the farmers recently receiving small
scale drip irrigation kits that, once installed, will help
conserve water while providing the plants with a consistent
source of water. Planting Faith and CCS staff are
currently assisting the farmers with installing the
irrigation, with disease and pest control of the aloe vera,
and are continuing the Prepare a Better Business training.
The Embu and Meru farmers recently harvested and dried
their sunflower seeds, and have delivered them to the CCS
demonstration farms in their areas for processing.
Although the harvest was poorer than expected due to a
lack of rain, the committees of both regions have met with
PF and CCS staff to continue planning for the start of the
Sunflower Oil businesses, which will begin as soon as the
processing machines are delivered to the stations. Both
groups are also near to completing the Prepare a Better
Business training as conducted by PF staff.
| Planting Faith Ministries, Inc. c/o Buddy Dearman 999 S. Shady Grove Rd., Suite 400 Memphis, Tennessee 38120 USA info@plantingfaith.org http://plantingfaith.blogspot.com www.plantingfaith.org Tel (Kenya): (254) 723-732-679 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
