Erratic rains in lower parts of Kangema constituency have significantly reduced harvests and pushed many farmers into poverty.
The area is semi-arid and many farmers rely on subsistence farming to support their families.
However, this is expected to change after the Sh294 million Nyanjigi irrigation water project is complete.
The project is 98 per cent complete. It was started in 2011 but stalled for seven years before the government injected more funds to complete it.
The project will benefit more than 1,000 households and cover 500 acres.
A well-wisher has also started a project to train farmers on dryland arrowroot farming to emancipate them from poverty.
Juliah Chege has been issuing fortified dryland arrowroot suckers to farmers in areas with reduced soil moisture.
Under the programme, more than 20,000 suckers will be distributed to farmers in Muguru and Iyego by the end of March.
The suckers have the capacity to produce six extra suckers that can be cut off and planted afresh, expanding the arrowroot crop.
Chege said the arrowroot suckers require little moisture to mature and can survive on 300ml or a cup of water per day.
Farmers are encouraged to mulch their crops to reduce evaporation.
Unlike conventional arrowroots that thrive in swampy areas, Chege said too much water disrupts the growth of the dryland arrowroots, leading to poor harvest.
“Dryland arrowroots farmers harvest the least during the rainy season because heavy rains interfere with the development of the arrowroots,” she told the Star.
The programme is aimed at providing an alternative source of income for residents while supplementing their diets.
It is expected to help jobless youth and women with small parcels of land.
Chege said women are sometimes sidelined and given small parcels of land by their husbands or parents, which strains their income generation.
“We live in a patriarchal community where land belongs to men and it is optional to give it to women,” she said.
Chege said the ultimate goal of the project is to engage farmers in value-addition to increase their income.
She is in the process of importing a Sh500,000 processing plant that will be installed in Kangema town. The plant will help farmers process the arrowroots into flour and produce crisps.
Due to its high level of nutrients, the flour can be mixed with other flours to help people with little access to proper nutrition.
“This project will ensure the community is stable economically and we will help them get a collective market for their produce. Arrowroots will soon become their cash crop,” Chege said.
Already, hundreds of farmers from Kanyenyaini, Rwathia and Kiairathe who were roped into the programme last year have started selling the arrowroots to a buyer.
The farmers harvest their produce at a particular time for easier transportation and are paid on delivery.
Chege said because of its high nutrient value, dryland arrowroot can fetch up to Sh100 a piece and the market is insatiable.
Chege, a part-time lecturer at the University of Nairobi, said she has trained three trainers who have in turn trained 20 others in their areas.
She said the project is a way of giving back to her community.
Trainers are available to help farmers tend their crops in the right manner.
She appealed to national and county governments to support the project to reach more farmers and help eradicate food insecurity.
“The multiplication effect of the suckers will make it possible for farmers to increase their farming within a short period of time,” Chege said.
Jackson Wokabi, a farmer from Njii Ithatu village, said they have suffered for decades due to the inability of their farms to sustain them.
“We are hard-working and have only been limited over the years by the poor rainfalls and lack of water but with the new project, we will all be able to improve our standards of living,” he said.
Wokabi asked the government to help them connect the irrigation water to their homes.
Edited by A.N
