The Busia government has entered into a tripartite agreement with Ustadi Foundation and Eden Oils Limited to empower soybean farmers.
Eden Oils project manager Joseph Ngugi on Saturday said the project targets 2,000 farmers and will run from January 2021 to December 2022, with 500 growers to be recruited every season.
He addressed the press after a meeting with Agriculture executive Moses Osia. Sh25 million will be injected into the project.
"Per every 200 farmers, there will be one lead farmer, while each aggregation centre will handle 1,000 farmers," he said, adding that farmers will benefit from good and climate-smart agricultural practices and access to markets.
Ustadi Foundation CEO George Mazuri said they teamed up with Eden Oils to support farmers to produce soya beans, with the oil company mandated to buy all harvests.
Dr Osia said the agreement is geared towards promoting soya production and even kitchen gardening. He said soya will be readily bought by Eden Oils as part of the raw materials for their oil production.
The foundation will support farmers to acquire the right input, especially fertiliser and seeds.
"This will be a great opportunity for farmers in having a ready market for their produce. Pricing of soya will be favourable, " he said, noting that the agreement will also entail revival of stalled oil projects like Palm Oil and growing of other crops such as cassava.
Dr Osia said the project will lead to improved incomes, livelihoods and living conditions. Farmers will be growing to sell and not selling to grow, hence the need for them to take up the initiative seriously, he added.
Agribusiness chief officer Moses Weunda encouraged farmers to do farming and business.
