Socio-Economics
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Item Accelerate Scaling up Forage Intensification Using Novel Digital Extension Approach in Kenya(UKnowedge, 2021) Njarui, D.M.G.; Gatheru, M.; Ndubi, J.M.; Murage, A.W.; Gichangi, A.W.; Gichangi, E.M.; Nogothu, U.S.; Kenya Agricultural & Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) ; The Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy ResearchWide scale adoption of diverse forages improves livestock productivity and farmers welfare. However, limited access to information and knowledge on forage production results in slow adoption in Kenya. There is need to enhance information and knowledge exchange among farming communities for efficient and effective adoption and decision-making. An inter-institutional pilot project was initiated in 2017 to scale-up forages in Kenya using a novel extension approach - the village knowledge centre (VKC). A VKC is an information and communication technology (ICT) digital platform-based linking farmers through smart phones and social media as a conduit for faster and effective information and knowledge. This paper shares the experiences of VKC intervention to scale up Urochloa grass technology among smallholder farmers for livestock productivity. Through the VKC support there has been increased access of information and knowledge on Urochloa grass management, conservation and livestock feeding. Approximately 702 farmers out of which 28% were women visited the VKC to seek information on Urochloa grass from May 2018 to May 2020. It has trained 22 lead farmers on the establishment and management of Urochloa grass. The VKC has created two WhatsApp groups for networking among farmers with over 330 members. Between September 2018 and May 2020, the groups shared 2550 messages on Urochloa management, conservation, and livestock feeding with other farmers in their communities. Additionally, the VKC has improved availability of Urochloa grass seeds to farmers. Over 530 farmers received the seeds through the VKC, while 500 made request though mobile phone Short Message Services (SMS) and were supplied using courier services. It was evident that VKC intervention has not only improved the adoption rate, but also led to increased forage productivity and higher income for farmers. There is a need to continue using tools such as the VKC in the dissemination of information on Urochloa grass and explore suitable funding for sustainability of the centre after the end of the project.Item African Mixed Farming Economics As Applied To Bukura, Nyanza Province, Kenya(1946) Brandford E.LTo dispose of essential data as quickly as possible particulars relative to this article are tabulated: - Locality.-Bukura, North Kavirondo,Nyanza Province. Altitude.-4,850 ft. Climate.-Hot and humid, with high, drying winds in the dry season (December February). Two crops a year (March /April and August/September). Rain/all.'-66.3 inches (average of 22 years). Soil Types.-On the top lands the prevailing type is a shallow red top-soil, with little humus, overlaying ironstone (murrum) subsoil. It easily packs and, owing to the impervious subsoil, quickly dries out. The lower slopes of the ridge are deeper and richer in texture, varying from black forest to red loams.Item Agricultural Knowledge And Information Systems Volume IV A Trans Nzoia District Report(Kenya Agricultural Research Institute, 1999) Kenya Agricultural Research InstituteThis study was carried out in four pilot districts of Trans-Nzoia, West Pokot, Homa Bay and Kiambu. It was participatory involving a team of Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARl) scientists (socio economists). Ministry of Agriculture (Research Extension Liaison Office). Department For Internation Development (DFID) Technical Support Staff on adaptive research, Netherlands Liaison Office (NLO) Technical staff on training and ETC East Africa Consultants. This constituted the Rapid Appraisal of Agricultural Knowledge Systems (RAAKS) Steering Team.Item Agricultural Statistics in Kenya(1935/1936) Liversage, V.Modern developments in the design of tabulating machines have greatly enlarged the scope of the statistical work which can be carried out with a reasonable expenditure of labour and time, and have brought within the bounds of possibility a degree of analysis which was previously out of the question.Item An Evaluation of Nutrition, Culinary, and Production Interventions Using African Indigenous Vegetables on Nutrition Security Among Smallholder Farmers in Western Kenya(Frontiers, 2023-05-15) Merchant, E.V.; Odendo, M.; Maiyo, N.; Govindasamy, R.; Morin, X.K.; Simon, J.E.; Hoffman, D.J.Introduction. Nutrition security continues to worsen in sub-Saharan Africa. Current research is limited on how seasonality may influence the impact of nutrition, culinary, and production interventions on food security, diet quality, and consumption of African Indigenous Vegetables (AIV); a culturally accepted source of micro-and-macronutrients that are easily produced due to their adaptation to the local environment. The objective of this study was to evaluate the programmatic impact of AIV interventions on nutrition security among smallholder farmers. Methods. In a randomized control trial, five target counties in Western Kenya were randomly assigned to one of four treatments: (1) control; (2) production intervention (PI); (3) nutrition and culinary intervention (NCI); and (4) NCI and PI (NCI/PI). After the counties were randomly assigned to a treatment, 503 smallholder farmers (18–65 years) were selected from participatory farmer groups. The PI consisted of five agricultural production modules delivered between 2016 and 2019. The NCI was delivered twice: (1) household nutrition education (2017) and (2) community culinary training (2019). The NCI/PI included communities receiving both interventions at these time periods. Baseline and endline surveys were administered to all participants once in October 2016 (harvest season) and to all available participants (n = 250) once in June to July 2019 (dry season), respectively. The impact evaluation was analyzed by Household Hunger Scale (HHS), Women’s Dietary Diversity Score (WDDS), AIV consumption frequency, and AIV market availability. Statistical tests included descriptive statistics (means and frequencies), paired t-test, McNemar’s test, Wilcoxon Signed-Rank test, ANOVA test with Tukey post hoc, and χ2 test. Open-ended questions were aggregated, and responses were selected based on relevancy and thoroughness of the response to provide context to the quantitative data. A value of p < 0.05 was used to denote statistical significance. Results. There was an overall decrease in WDDS, HHS, and consumption frequency between baseline and endline attributed to seasonal differences. Despite this, post-intervention, households that received NCI/PI had a higher WDDS relative to the control: WDDS 5.1 ± 1.8 vs. 4.2 ± 1.5, p = 0.035. In addition, between baseline and endline, there was an overall increase in the percentage of respondents that reported an adequate supply of key AIVs, particularly for households that received PI. Furthermore, seasonal effects caused a reported shift in the primary location for purchasing AIVs from the village to the town market. There was no reported difference in HHS. While “diet awareness” significantly influenced diet quality among the NCI treatment group, “production” was reported to have the greatest influence on diet quality among all intervention groups. Discussion. The findings revealed that coupled nutrition, culinary, and production interventions could create a protective effect against seasonal fluctuations in the availability and affordability of AIV as evidenced by a higher WDDs. Conclusion and Recommendations: These findings suggest that future programming and policy should focus on promoting the availability, accessibility, acceptability, and affordability of improved agronomic practices and germplasm for both smallholder farmers with particular emphasis on AIV varieties that contain high levels of micro-and macronutrients, improved agronomic characteristics (e.g., delayed flowering, multiple harvests, higher yields, and disease resistance), and are aligned with the communities’ cultural preferences. In addition, agricultural training and extension services should incorporate nutrition and culinary interventions that emphasize the importance of farmers prioritizing harvests for their household consumption.Item An Analysis of Agricultural Credit Markets In Vihiga Division of Kakamega District, Kenya(1993) Oluoch, K. W.; Musebe, R.; Wangia, C.The agricultural credit markets in Vihiga Division of Kakamega District, Kenya, were analyzed using descriptive statistics and regression analyses applied to both secondary and primary data. The objective was to evaluate the causes of the limited use of formal credit in the division. The following factors were found to be responsible for the limited use of formal credit by the small-scale farmers: Firstly, the formal credit sources had tight and rigid eligibility criteria as well as cumbersome application procedures and credit delivery systems which also tended to make the borrower cost to be high. Secondly, the supply of credit was far below its demand and therefore there were not enough funds for every would-be borrower. Thirdly, loan repayment schedules were incompatible with the cash-generating pattern of agricultural enterprises and this was a disincentive for would-be borrowers. Lastly, some farmers never applied for formal credit either because they were not aware of its existence or because of tight and rigid eligibility criteria associated with it. As a result of these factors, informal credit sources were the predominant sources of credit for the farmers.Item Annual Report of Socio-economics Section (KARI -NARL) 2002(Kenya Agricultural Research Institute, 2002) Kenya Agricultural Research Institute; Kilambya, D.W.; Kenya Agricultural Research InstituteThis is the 9th Annual Report since the establishment of the NARL Socio-economics Section 1995. The section is supposed to carry out socioeconomic research on natural resource management (NRM). This is in line with the national mandate of the National Agricultural Research Laboratories (NARL) of carrying out research in NARL and in particular soil and water management and crop protection.Item Area Measurement Techniques: Some observations On The Methodology developed in Kenya Research Into Small-Farm Economics(1968) Wilson F. A.The utility of output data from the analysis of a farm business is very much limited if that output cannot be accurately related to input.In effect farm business data only becomes farm management data when both output and input are measured and related to each other as interdependent and dynamic variablesItem Assessing the Demand for Improved Cook Stoves among Low Income Households in Kenya: Case of Baringo and West Pokot Counties(Scientific Research Publishing Inc., 2022-08-29) Kisiangani, B.; Okoti, M.; Mutembei, H.; Wamalwa, P.; Mandila, B.; Egerton University ; Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization ; University of Nairobi ; University of KabiangaIn recent years, clean and improved cooking solutions have significantly evolved globally, generating an attractive market opportunity for enterprises engaging in the provision of innovative cooking appliances, fuels, and financing to speed uptake of the disseminated technologies. Improved Cook stoves (ICS) have been widely touted for their potential to deliver triple wing benefits of improved agricultural productivity, enhanced household health and time savings through reduced scrimmage in sourcing for biomass fuel, and sustainability through reduced local deforestation, further reducing black carbon emissions. Despite decades of promotion, diffusion of ICS has continued to remain slow. This project aimed at investigating the factors that hinder the uptake of ICS in some selected poor villages from Baringo and West Pokot Counties in Kenya, East Africa. Data was collected from 2918 households across 12 villages and analyzed statistically. On average, households spent approximately KES 2149 on fuel per month, covered 2.15 km and spent around 1.5 hours collecting/getting their primary cooking fuel. Majority of the consumers, 94% expressed willingness to pay (WTP) for an ideal cookstove (one that emits less smoke, saves fuel, safe during cooking, easy to light, and that could cook fast). A majority of the consumers (46.5%) preferred to acquire ICSs through equal monthly installments while 40.47% preferred to pay cash and the rest opted for the “pay-to-use” model and whenever cash was available. From the binary Probit model, consumers’ WTP for the ICSs was positively influenced by age and level of education of the head of the family, size of the family, number of children under five years, distance to the source of fuel, and the desire to use and own an ICS. Policies that are aimed at maximizing cook stove effectiveness and uptake among the poor in the target counties and Kenya at large was recommended.Item Barriers and Facilitators in Preparation and Consumption of African Indigenous Vegetables: A Qualitative Exploration from Kenya(Frontiers, 2022-03-21) Merchant, E.V.; Odendo, M.; Ndinya, C.; Nyabinda, N.; Maiyo, N.; Downs, S.; Hoffman, D.J.; Simon, J.E.; Rutgers University ; Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization - Kakamega ; Academic Model Providing Access to HealthCare ; Rutgers School of Public HealthMalnutrition and food security continue to be major concerns in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). In Western Kenya, it is estimated that the double burden of malnutrition impacts 19% of adults and 13–17% of households. One potential solution to help address the concern is increased consumption of nutrient-dense African Indigenous Vegetables (AIVs). The objectives of this study were to: (i) document current methods used for preparation and consumption of AIVs; (ii) identify barriers and facilitators of AIVs consumption and preparation; and (iii) identify a package of interventions to increase the consumption of AIVs to promote healthy diets. This study used qualitative data collected from 145 individual farmers (78 female and 67 male) in 14 focus group discussions (FGDs) using a semi-structured survey instrument. Most farmers reported that they prepared AIVs using the traditional method of boiling and/or pan-cooking with oil, tomato, and onion. However, there were large discrepancies between reported cooking times, with some as little as 1–5 min and others as long as 2 h. This is of importance as longer cooking times may decrease the overall nutritional quality of the final dish. In addition, there were seasonal differences in the reported barriers and facilitators relative to the preparation and consumption of AIVs implying that the barriers are situational and could be modified through context-specific interventions delivered seasonally to help mitigate such barriers. Key barriers were lack of availability and limited affordability, due to an increase cost, of AIVs during the dry season, poor taste and monotonous diets, and perceived negative health outcomes (e.g., ulcers, skin rashes). Key facilitators included availability and affordability during peak-season and particularly when self-produced, ease of preparation, and beneficial health attributes (e.g., build blood, contains vitamins and minerals). To promote healthy diets within at risk-populations in Western Kenya, the findings suggest several interventions to promote the preparation and consumption of AIVs. These include improved household production to subsequently improve affordability and availability of AIVs, improved cooking methods and recipes that excite the family members to consume these dishes with AIVs, and the promotion of the beneficial heath attributes of AIVs while actively dispelling any perceived negative health consequences of their consumption.Item Bukura Native Agricultural School, Nyanza Province, Kenya(1946) Bradford, E.L.Bukura Training Centre, originally a Seed Farm and Experimental Station, has passed through many vicissitudes, but its status has been primarily an African agricultural training center. Originally the training was for Native Agricultural, Instructors, farm headmen, etc., and the course extended over a period of four years but now that departmental staff replacements only are required the training has been extended to suitable candidates anxious to study agriculture in their own interests, to fit them for more skillful management of their own land in due course.Item Centre Evaluation Report For Year 2000 Awards During The 7th Kari Biennial Scientific Conference November 2000(Kenya Agricultural Research Institute, 2000) Kenya Agricultural Research InstituteThe KARl's core business is to develop agricultural technologies and induce dissemination of the same through working in partnership with other interested parties, specifically end users. The institute's efforts aim at improving national agricultural productivity in general and regional uplift of agricultural production in particular. In order for the institute to address its mandate properly such that results are realised, its organisational structure and working systems should be structured in a manner that all national and regional constraints of agricultural production are simultaneously addressed. Such a structure should provide development and assignments of centre mandates to address certain specific issues and operate in designated localities. The quality and quantity of agricultural products should be put into consideration when developing technologies to enhance the same.Item Characterization of Indigenous Chicken Production and Related Constraints: Insights from Smallholder Households in Rural Kenya(Elsevier B.V., 2023-07) Anyona, D.N.; Musyoka, M.M.; Ogolla, K.O.; Chemuliti, J.K.; Nyamongo, I.K.; Bukachi, S.A.; University of Nairobi ; Kenya Agricultural & Livestock Research Organization ; The Co-operative University of KenyaIndigenous chickens (IC) contribute significantly to nutrition and socioeconomic wellbeing of rural households. However, despite their potential, production remains low. Attempts to improve IC production among smallholder farmers in Makueni county, Eastern Kenya have achieved little success due to a variety of constraints. This paper explores IC production characteristics and compares the ranks assigned to production and marketing constraints across geographic regions and in male and female-headed households. A descriptive quantitative household survey of 1217 respondents drawn from IC rearing households was conducted and the results integrated with qualitative findings from 22 informants. Results showed an average flock size of 14.9 ± 15.94 IC per household, with female- headed households having relatively fewer chicken than male-headed households. However, relatively more chicken (15.9 ± 18.9) were lost per household during the last disease outbreak compared to the number kept at the time of study. Production system was largely free-range in nature with minimal provision of supplementary feeds. Disease (1.13±0.5), predation (3.16±1.9) and low market prices (3.89±1.9) were three top ranked (Mean Rank±SD) constraints in that order. Lack of capital, high cost of inputs, poor access to extension services and poor access to knowledge ranked significantly higher in female-headed households and in remote areas, while low market price ranked higher in male-headed households. Failure to agree on the selling price was the major constraint to marketing, while rejection of IC due to diseases, inability to agree on selling price and rejection due to size ranked higher in female-headed households compared to male-headed households. Interventions modeled towards improving biosecurity measures to curb diseases, financial empowerment and facilitating access to markets for smallholder farmers should be prioritized.Item THE COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT OF SAMBRET ESTATE(1979) Monkhouse A.J.W; Brooke Bond Leibig (Kenya) LimitedAfter The second world war agricultural production of many crops and of tea in particular expanded rapidly in east Africa increased the yields due to more efficient agronomic practice led to higher returns and a consequent demand for more land suitable for tea planting particularly in those areas experiencing the high rainfall required for optimum tea production. Large tracts of these areas are preserved as gazette forests to conserve and regulate water supplies and by the mid-1950s there was opposition in Kenya to any further expansion of tea plantations because of the risk to water supplies if forests excision were allowed to continue.Item Conservation Education In The Primary And Secondary School Syllabus(1968) Muka, S. F.The changing and re-shaping of attitudes towards wildlife is every nation's challenge these days. Governments are realizing and are continuing to appreciate the role played by wildlife in nature. They are now determined to conserve wildlife, both vegetation and animals, effectively. The business of conservation cannot be left to a single ministry; i.t is a matter concerning the whole nation, every ministry, and all people-young and old.Item Consumer Intentions to Buy Nutrient-Rich Precooked Bean Snacks: Does Sensory Evaluation Matter?(African Scholarly Science Communications Trust, 2021-06-25) Lutomia, C.K.; Karanja, D.; Nchanji, E.B.; Induli, I.; Mutuku, R.; Gichangi, A.; Gichangi, A.; Birachi, E.; Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Institute ; International Center for Tropical Agriculture ; Bioversity International ; Sayari foods-Smart Logistics SolutionPrecooked bean products have the potential of bridging the common bean demand and consumption gap in Kenya. However, sensory evaluation of novel precooked processed products has been inadequate in determining acceptability. This study assessed the sensory evaluation of precooked bean snacks by 269 rural consumers in Machakos County of Kenya. Descriptive results indicated that less than one-quarter (22%) of the consumers were aware of the precooked bean products. The low awareness is a disconnect from the expectations that farming households were probably going to be aware of processed bean products because of their participation in bean value chain. Sensory evaluation showed that 75% of the consumers evaluated the freshness of the bean snacks positively, with about 90% and 63% of them positively assessing the taste of the precooked bean snacks branded Keroma Delicious and Keroma Fruity, respectively. The taste evaluation of Keroma Fruity brand significantly differed depending on age and level of education of the consumer. Similarly, the taste of Keroma Delicious brand also significantly differed by age and educational attainment of consumers. Furthermore, while consumers liked the taste parameters of the products, less than half of them liked the beany flavour of the two products. Results from the binary logit regression model indicated that freshness, sourness, and flavour positively and significantly predicted the probability of future purchases of Keroma Fruity bean snack brands. Consumer intentions to buy Keroma Delicious brand were positively predicted by flavour and marginally by sweetness. To accelerate the consumption of precooked bean products, product development and marketing strategies should recognise the role of sensory attributes in driving acceptability of the bean snacks, deploy processing technologies that retain and enhance sensory attributes, create awareness of the products, and segment the market from a gender lens in order to satisfy the diverse consumer needs and preferences.Item A corporate culture for organisational transformation: A training module for KARI(Kenya Agricultural Research Institiute, 2007) Kenya Agricultural Research Institiute; Kimani L.Culture has been defined as "way of life of group of people. It is complex and includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, customs and habits acquired by man as a member of society. It is a distinctive way of life of a group of people, and their complete design for living".Item Costs and Efficiency of Bush Clearing By Arboricides In Karamoja(1962) Philip M.SThe Uganda Forest Department staned to use arboricides to kiU weed trees in 1951, and by 1956 was using them on a field scale for canopy manipulation in tropical high forest. By 1954, when research into their use in bush eradication began, considerable experience had been acquired and this influenced the type of preliminary trials done in Karamoja. This study was made in the same region and among the same vegetative types as are found within the catchment area experiments; it was designed to provide data on the cost and efficiency of arboricides in bush eradication for the information of the Natural Resources Committee of the Uganda Government.Item Costs and Efficiency of Mechanical Bush Clearing In Karamoja(1962) Evans J.PA mechinical bush clearing 'trial was carried out in May / June, 1958, eight and a half miles from Moroto on the main road to Soroli. The trial was designed to study techniques and cos'ts of mechanical bush clearing in Karamoja conditions and to be a trial run for future operations on the Catchment Experiment at Atumatak.Item Deconstructing Leisure Time and Workload: Case of Women Bean Producers in Kenya(Agriculture & Food Security, 2021-05-07) Nchanji, E.B.; Mutua, M.; Odhiambo, C.; Nchanji, Y.K.; Karanja, D.; International Center for Tropical Agriculture ; International Center for Tropical Agriculture ; University of Eastern Finland ; Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research OrganisationBackground. The notion of leisure became pronounced more than 20 years ago when women who worked on or out of the farm came home to a “second shift,” which entailed domestic work and childcare. This gap continues today not only between men and women but also among women and men. Women's challenges in terms of their leisure arise out of or are shaped by social norms and different life contexts. Method. The Women's Empowerment in Agriculture Index (WEAI) was conducted to understand women's empowerment and disempowerment status in agricultural activities in five counties in Kenya in 2017. In 2019, focus group discussions were carried out in two of the five counties to understand how men and women farmers define leisure and assess the leisure gap and its effect on women's farm and household activities. We were also interested in understanding how men's and women's workload affects leisure and other productive economic activities, resulting in empowerment and how women’s unpaid work contributes to income poverty. Result. The WEAI showed that 28% of disempowerment (5DE) in women farmers is due to lack of time for leisure activities and 18% from being overworked. This means that the time indicator accounts for 46% of disempowerment in Kenyan women bean farmers. Men in Bomet and Narok spent more time than women in raising large livestock and leisure. Women in Bomet spent more time than men in cooking and domestic work (fetching water and collecting fuelwood), while men in Bomet spent more time than women in managing their businesses. Conclusion. Work overload is a constraining factor to women's empowerment in bean production and agricultural productivity. What is considered leisure for men and women is embedded in society’s social fabrics, and it is contextual. This paper highlights instances where leisure provides a way for women to embody and/or resist the discourses of gender roles in the bean value chain and households to enhance food security and health.
