By Rodgers Omondi, Busia
Busia County has secured an additional four-year funding extension for the Kenya Climate-Smart Agriculture Project (KELCOP) to expand its interventions and benefit more farmers across the county.
Speaking at Busia ATC during an inter-county Gender Action Learning System (GALS) fair that brought together 60 beneficiary groups from Busia and Bungoma counties, Busia County Executive Committee Member (CECM) for Agriculture George Mukok said the extension would enable the county to reach more farmers and strengthen their transition from subsistence to commercial agriculture.
“We have been given additional funding and this project is here for the next four years to benefit the farmers through this extension. This system is helping the farmer to move from peasant farming to commercial farming. We are also working on gender inclusivity,” said Mukok.
He said the additional funding would enable the county to expand the project beyond the four sub-counties where it is currently being implemented.
“Through the additional funding, we are intending to expand the groups that are already benefiting in the selected sub counties. The project has been in one ward per subcounty in four sub counties in our county” he said.
Mukok also said the county government was working on agricultural legislation aimed at improving access to financing and creating better opportunities for farmers to commercialize their activities.
“There are bills aligned to the transformation of agriculture which are in the assembly. The bills, including the Crop Development Corporation Bill, Edible Oil Development Bill, financing of agriculture and revamping of ADF, are some of the bills that will help to ensure farmers have finance and are able to do agribusiness. This will result in food security and money in the pockets,” he said.
Busia County KELCOP Coordinator Radoli Shiundu said women and youth were among the major beneficiaries of the project, with women accounting for 54 per cent and youth 30 per cent of the farmers enrolled.
He said many young people had ventured into value addition and marketing using technology, while others had diversified their farming enterprises.
“Our farmers now have business plans, which are simple diagrammatic presentations of where they are and their vision. Our farmers have been able to increase their income by up to 500 per cent from chicken and goat farming,” said Shiundu.
He added that the project had also improved household food security and promoted balanced diets among beneficiary families.
Shiundu said the project had targeted 10,640 farmers in Busia and had so far reached about 9,500, representing nearly 90 per cent of the target.
“Our target as Busia was 10,640 and up to now we have managed to reach 9,500, which is around 90 per cent. We are determined to achieve our target by the end of the project.The beneficiaries have received various forms of support, including animal feeds, chicks and goats, while 20 youths have been trained in veterinary studies, with 19 of them successfully supporting farmers in the field.” He said.
One of the beneficiaries from Bungoma County, Simon Shiundu, said KELCOP had transformed his approach to poultry farming by equipping him with knowledge on agribusiness and planning.
“I started keeping chickens in 2018 without knowledge of the sector. I continued with farming but it was with a lot of difficulties until 2025 when I met a trainer from KELCOP. I learned how to draw the vision journey that is helping me in my farming,” he said.
Shiundu said he had since ventured into buying and rearing chicks for a short period before selling them at a profit.
He added that the project had introduced him to the use of a manual incubator, which had increased his ability to produce chicks while creating an additional source of income.
“I am also using a manual incubator which has the capability to produce 46 chicks from 50 eggs. It only requires a source of power, about a 50-watt bulb, a box, wood shavings and a small tin for water. This has also helped me to earn more money through the sale of my own incubated chicks,” he said.
Shiundu said his goal was to have 500 layers and incubators capable of hatching 2,000 chicks by January 2028, adding that he also hoped to mentor other young people in poultry farming.
Meanwhile, Lilian Akinyi from Elugulu Ward in Busia County said KELCOP had helped her become economically self-reliant and acquire skills that she was using to support other farmers in her community.
“Before the project, I was totally dependent on my husband for provision in the house. Through the training in the project, I am currently rearing 90 chickens from the five chickens that I started with. I have also managed to produce nutritious vegetables for the use of the family and for sale, giving me extra money.” she said.
