AFC AND GLOBAL COMMUNITIES TRAIN FARMERS IN NAKURU COUNTY 2019

Wednesday, 14th August, 2019. In a bid to build capacity of both its existing and potential clients, the Agricultural Finance Corporation (AFC) in partnership with Global Communities Kenya has organized a training workshop for farmers in Nakuru County. The two organizations aim to build capacity and enhance Nakuru farmers’ performance in agriculture including linking them to markets and financial services. The program empowers farmers especially youth agripreneurs with better agribusiness information to enhance their productivity and profitability, focusing on financial literacy, record keeping and business planning, credit management and marketing. With this program, AFC aims to help boost the livelihoods of Kenyan farmers by empowering them to be more productive, thereby alleviating poverty and creating more employment in the county. AFC is also partnering with the Government of Kenya to implement an Enable Youth program funded by African Development Bank . The aim of this program is to create an enabling environment for building entrepreneurship in agribusiness for young unemployed graduates and those already engaged in agribusiness. A change in mind-set that will see agriculture as a viable business and career opportunity will be the objective. Hailing the partnership with AFC, the Global Communities Credit Specialist Mr. Bernard Muhande had this to say “Our mission is to create long-lasting, positive and community-led change that improves the lives and livelihoods of vulnerable people across the country. Our central goal is to build the capacity of communities to direct the development of their own lives and livelihoods. Empowered communities are able to drive change when they recognize everyone’s needs, understand their rights and the natural and market forces that affect them, and are able to take collective action”. “Once empowered, communities are better able to build constructive relationships with government institutions such as AFC, the private sector and civil society in ways that are sustainable. In turn, local government, the private sector and civil society have a greater ability to address community needs” Over 200 farmers have already benefited from the program in Bomet County with another 300 expected to be covered in Nakuru County. Each session targets women and youth who constitute fifty per cent of the participants