• Mathew Jilani from EFF organisation said they have 500,000 cashew nut seedlings and 500,000 moringa seedlings, which will be given to farmers.
• Investors who have set up a factory in Vipingo said they are forced to import cashew nuts from Tanzania and urged the government to expand production.
Image: FILE
Kilifi farmers are set to benefit from one million cashew nut and moringa seedlings to address food insecurity and climate change challenges.
The drought-resistant seedlings are being distributed by Empowering Farmers Foundation (EFF), which is working with 12,000 farmers.
The cashew nuts will take three years to mature and there is a ready market for the produce.
EFF launched the project funded by the ETG Climate Solutions in 2012, with 3,700 farmers in Matsangoni ward.
It was scaled up to support 12,500 farmers from five other wards of Watamu, Dabaso, Kakuyuni, Tezo and Ganda. The organisation started distributing cashew nut seedlings with an aim of achieving a target of one million trees.
Kilifi Governor Gideon Mung’aro and his deputy Flora Chibule said cashew nut farming in Kilifi collapsed because of bad leadership.
“When the government was under President Moi, the cashew nut factory, which belonged to Kilifi farmers, was sold through the backdoor and that’s what discouraged farmers. They stopped planting cashew nuts because they thought their property had been taken from them,” he said.
Mung’aro said the Kilifi cashew nut factory farmers had their own resort called Sinbad hotel in Malindi, which was also sold.
For now, he said, they were ready to start replanting cashew nuts and soon they will repossess the cashew nut factory.
The governor spoke during the grand launch of seedlings distribution in Dabaso, Kilifi North constituency.
Mathew Jilani from EFF organisation said they have 500,000 cashew nut seedlings and 500,000 moringa seedlings, which will be given to farmers.
“They [farmers] have been trained on how to set up the seedlings holes. What remains now is to plant the trees and we will be working with them to show them how to plant,” he said.
Jilani said after planting, they will still work closely with the farmers for at least eight months to monitor the progress of the trees.
He said they expect each tree to produce more than 20 kilogrammes and in case there is 80 per cent success rate of the 500,000 seedlings, that will bring 400,000 seedlings to maturity and they will harvest 8,000 tonnes.
He said they are planning to reach more farmers in other wards in Kilifi and later move to other counties such as Lamu, Kwale and Tana River.
Nick De Souza of Nuts and more Processing East Africa limited said the cashew nut variety they have are hybrid and well-adapted to the climatic conditions of the area.
“So where other trees may be failing, we want to assure that the cashew, the moringa and the millet that are here will bring in revenue, food and the other benefits to farmers in Kilifi,” she said.
Joyce Kenga, a farmer from Tezo village, said EFF took them for training to understand how cashew nuts are planted.
She said Moringa is also used as food and there is a ready market.
Rungo Badi from Jimba village expects to get 30 cashew nut seedlings for his farm.
“If one cashew nut seedling can produce 80 kilos, then with 30 cashew nut trees, I will get good profit,” he said.
Nathaniel Wanje from Mkenge village said the cashew nut trees will empower farmers economically.
“We have hope with the cashew nut project. Previously, the crop did not benefit farmers but with the current project, the farmers stand to get good yield,” he said.
Investors who have set up a factory in Vipingo said they are forced to import cashew nuts from Tanzania and urged the government to expand production.