•Kenya Climate Innovation Center which is the implementing partner signed a five-year contract with the two development agencies.
•The pact is expected to promote the growth and development of the agribusiness sector through the provision of financing and capacity development assistance.
Kilifi women and youth-led agribusiness enterprises will benefit from a five-year European Union and Danish International Development Agency AgriBiz programme.
Kenya Climate Innovation Center, which is the implementing partner, signed a five-year contract with the two development agencies.
The MoU signing ceremony was held at the Kilifi county government headquarters.
The contract will see the Sh5.1 billion programme support 2,400 women and youth-led agribusiness enterprises across the country.
It will also create 17,000 job opportunities.
The pact is expected to promote the growth and development of the agribusiness sector through the provision of financing and capacity development assistance to youth and women-led SMEs.
Under the programme will be the provision of training, coaching and mentoring in entrepreneurship and business skills needed to develop and run successful agricultural enterprises for youth and women in Kilifi and the surrounding counties of Mombasa, Kwale, Taita Taveta and Tana River.
The AgriBiz programme will also provide support in identifying market opportunities and value-adding activities, building links to markets, gaining access to financial support and policies development.
European Union ambassador to Kenya Simon Mordue said the partnership seeks to fully exploit the coastal region agricultural potential as well as to improve the region’s indigenous agricultural practices to meet modern global standards.
“Financing agribusiness can increase the added value of agriculture, strengthen local economies, food security, nutrition and improve the quality of life in many homes at risk of exclusion and vulnerability, especially for women and youth,” he said.
According to the Kilifi government, more than half of the land in the region is arable.
Natural pastures form almost half of the county farmland while subsistence farming takes up 21 per cent. A paltry 1.5 per cent is under commercial crop production.
Main food crops include cassava, maize, cowpeas, rice and green grams. Fruits such as mangoes, pineapples and bananas are also grown and horticultural crops including cashew nuts and coconuts.
Ranching and agriculture contribute significant amounts of income to the economy of Kilifi. These provide opportunities for agribusiness.
Danish ambassador to Kenya Ole Thonke applauded the partnership between the two institutions.
“This paves way for support to women and youth in growing sustainable businesses within the agriculture sector. Denmark and the EU are confident that the AgriBiz programme will not only provide the requisite support in terms of financing and technical advice but will also act as a motivation to pursue commercial venture within agriculture in the country at large,” he said.
Kilifi Agriculture executive Luciana Sanzua termed the partnership as a means to diversify the economic activities in the country.
“The county has a huge potential in agribusiness and this partnership is a frontier for our farmers to benefit fully. I am urging our women and youth to embrace this opportunity to ensure the sustainability of our county,” she said.
KCIC chief executive Edward Mungai said youth involvement in agriculture has been low due to a negative attitude towards agriculture.
AgriBiz programme intervention will help address this challenge, increase employment and provide the support needed to develop agriculture, which will empower youth in the counties.
“Agriculture provides the highest potential to create employment and offers the most jobs to youth. However, this potential is untapped because most of the farmers practise subsistence farming which makes the youth see agriculture as an unattractive and dirty venture or business to participate in,” he said.
He said KCIC through the support of the European Union and Danida will open a business incubation hub in this region that will offer financing and technical services to youth and women in this region.
“I hope that we get to impact as many livelihoods as possible even as we seek to create more than 17,000 jobs across the country through this programme,” he said.
Edited by Kiilu Damaris