Use of modern technology to boost crop yields and Marketing in Ng'arua

Farmers in the rural parts of ngarua employs all the known techniques to ensure that they improve crops yields...Read more.

UN agency begins procurement scheme to benefit Ethiopian farmers

UN agency begins procurement scheme to benefit Ethiopian farmers

The value of I.C.T training to the people of Sipili.

By Bett Kipsang.
Introduction.
Ngarua Maarifa center stands out in Sipili township as the only place you pop in and access the internet, read books, attend ICT training's and other information services free of charge. The question lingering in the minds of many people is....Read more

Importance of Water to Man.

By

Luciah Muthoni Kaguru

Water is used for different purposes at home, for example washing clothes; drinking, bathing, washing utensils and cooking. In farms plants needs water for them to grow well. During dry seasons during water is used to irrigate crops. Livestock needs water for drinking after feeding every day. Some other animals like fish live in water. If they are removed fish from water they die....Read more

Beans

Beans are belongs to the group of legumes, they are edible and are an important source of protein in Kenya. They are grown in all for their dry seeds and green pods. They can be intercropped with other crops like maize and cassava....Read More

The universal crop.

Maize in Kenya grows well in an altitude of 2200m above sea level. It prefers medium temperatures, rainfall and attitude....Read More

Importance of crop farming.

Crop farming is an important economic activity in Countries such as Kenya and Uganda.... Read full story

The sweet potatoes

The word 'sweet' is used because of their sweet taste. Sweet potatoes vary in type. There is the white, red and the orange varieties...Read full story

Grafting Of mangoes.

A mango is an evergreen fruit tree of the cashew family. Mangoes are widely cultivated in the tropics. It bears fleshy yellowish fruits that are either eaten ripe or green.....Read full story

Our Environment

Means what surrounds us. These comprises of living things like plants, animals, insects, microscopic organisms and non-living things like rocks, soil, water etc. There are many challenges resulting from people's faillure to become accustomed to their environment.....Read full story

How to tame corruption.

The word Corruption is mentioned virtually everywhere everyday! The most common connotation is that it carries, negative attributes. It is commonly associated with underdevelopment, poverty, unemployment, projects failure etc. People are encouraged to fight corruption, but unless they answer correctly the question ‘‘what is corruption?’’ no meaningful results may be expected...Read full story

Maarifa Center; The Mother of Knowledge.

The following is a moving poem by a youthful user of the Ngarua Maarifa Center. Sam don't mince his words in describing how the Centre has benefited him and the entire community. The young school leaver could not watch from a distance, he has volunteered to help people access information as he also learn computer packages offered free of charge at the center. Enjoy the poem.

You are the mother of information,
You are the source of knowledge,
And the also the source of change,
To the whole of Sipili community,
Thank you ‘BIG’ Ng`arua Maarifa. Read full Poem

Turkey farming in Ngarua.

Introduction.

A turkey is a large black or white kind of bird that is kept in homes as part of poultry. With good management turkeys are very productive and farmers keep them as a source of income. One can start turkey farming with only one or two turkeys. A female turkey can be reared alone then taken to the male one for the mating so that it can lay quality eggs for incubation. Read full story.

Students learning computer at Ngarua Maarifa Center.

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E-marketing by rural communities

Marketing for Commodities in Ng'arua has gone a notch higher, since the introduction of E-marketing through ''Sokopepe'' system aimed at enabling farmers to access better prices and avoid exploitation by brokers. The video clip explores on farmer's problems, hard work and appeals for interventions.

The Tallest Kales of Ngarua.

Kale or borecole is a form of cabbage (Brassica oleracea Acephala Group), green or purple, in which the central leaves do not form a head. It is considered to be closer to wild cabbage than most domesticated forms...wikipidia’’
Sukuma Wiki is a popular Kenyan side dish that can be made out of collards or kale.

In Kenya, the plant traditionally used is a tall- growing cabbage variety elsewhere known as "walking stick cabbage" for the tall woody stalk it produces. It is often served with ugali, a porridge made from maize. Translated literally from Swahili, sukuma wiki means 'to push out the week', implying that it is a staple used to stretch the family meals to last for the week. Read full story.

Tree planting.

By Naomi Ndichu.
A tree is a living thing inform of a plant that grows on land. There are different kinds and species of trees growing in different part of the country. Some trees are indigenous, like pine, cider, Olive Africana Etc. While others are exotic. Exotic trees ere introduced and planted in a given area, for example, Cyprus, Eucalyptus and fruit trees. Read full story

Free I.C.T Training at Ng'arua Maarifa.

Introduction.

 Ngarua Maarifa Center is located at sipili trading center, Ngarua Division of Laikipia west District. The center offers computer trainings, and various information to communities free of charge. The need to offer such trainings stemmed from the vision of ''connecting communities with knowledge'', through I.C.Ts....Read full story

A FIELD VISIT TO NGOMONGO FARM.

Introduction.

 Ngomongo farm is located in Sipili location of Ngarua division laikipa west district. One morning, the ALIN Field Officer based at Ngarua CKC, accompanied by a community reporter Mr. Samuel Githumbi, visited Mr' Thomas Ngwiri's farm. The farmer is a member of Ngarua ALIN focal group and have benefited  allot from information disseminated at the Ngarua Community Knowledge Center (C.K.C). Ngwiri's farm is endowed with several kinds of crops; pineapple, cassava, maize, sweet potatoes, Oranges, Beans, Pawpaws, cow peas and many others. He also keeps livestock like dairy goats, cattle and poultry.

 

 Ngomongo means ''a rocky place''. Farmers in the area must first remove stones from their farms to create space for crop production. Thomas Ngwiri have done it excellently, and he have created a nice farm, one can hardly believe it used to be rocky. Stones from his farm were more than enough for him to build a house and sold the surpluses. Even after doing that he still remained with several heaps of stones. The stones are arranged along the fence to give room for crops to grow.

Challenges and possible solutions.

 Accessing, crops market is a great challenge, he has always sold his fruits at throw away prices at Sipili trading center. However he is optimistic that the introduction of e-marketing shall solve the problem. Crop pests, diseases and wild life attacks on farms are a real menace in Ngomongo! Pineapples are frequently destroyed by elephants straying from a nearby forest. ''Whenever an Elephant enters your farm, you only wake up the following day to count losses'' Says Ngwiri. 

Elephants feed on the edible part of pineapples and can take time to look for the ripe ones, in the process, destroying other crops. However farmers have devised some means of chasing away the large animals by lighting fire or using a powerful touch to scare them away.  

 Porcupines on the other hand pose a threat to the hard working farmers. A single porcupine can feed on up-to ten to twenty ripe pineapples per night. This can be a source of great discouragement to a farmer. One day when Ngwiri was visiting a friend, several kilometers away from home. They happened to discuss the ongoing at their homes and farms. The sharing came with a sigh of relief for Ngwiri; He learnt how to trap the disturbing rodent.

 The techniques of trapping the large rodents is simple. One just needs to fold a wire mesh to a Conical shape, the wire is made in a manner that the entrance is enough for a porcupine to get in, then it gets smaller and smaller towards the other end. 

When the trap is ready, a farmer takes it to the hole from where the animals get into the farm. An innocent porcupine will squeeze itself into the trap, as it tries to get into the farm, and because the traps get thinner and thinner towards one end, the poor animal tries to move backwards on realized the going is not getting any smoother. 

 The prickles covering the entire body of the porcupine, gets trapped in the wire mesh preventing the animal from escaping. Early in the morning the farmer just goes to check the trap thus finding the animal inside. 

 Immediately he got the information, Ngwiri did not hesitate to try it, the results were quite encouraging', for a while his pineapples were not attacked. Once a porcupines is killed the rest can quickly sense danger and will not come to the same place again. 

 When he was done with the porcupines he thought it was time to relax and enjoy the fruits of his labour, little did he know that another pest in the name of wild birds, would come knocking. He discovered a wild bird which feeds on the pineapples leaving a shell of an outer covering, like porcupines the bird also feeds on ripe fruits. Mr. Ngwiri started covering the ripe pineapple using  black polythene packs. 

Soon afterwards the mischievous birds had discovered that, the black paper indicates where a ripe pineapple is, and their search for the fruits was even made easier. On realizing this Mr. Ngwiri withdrew from using the paper packs. Ngwiri now shares the skills with other farmer whose crops have been destroyed by the birds and porcupine. 

By 

Bett Kipsang.

NGARUA COMMUNITY UPBEAT OVER C.R.P (SOKO PEPE)

 Communities living in Ngarua are mostly agricultural producers and small scale traders. They work really hard to produce food crops for subsistence use and surpluses for trade. ''You mention direct access to commodity markets and you take their attention by a swoop'' said Sam Githumbi, a youthful C.K.C user. This is true since, for many years he has witnessed the community suffer exploitation by middlemen who buys their produce at low prices.

 The introduction of E-marketing through the Agricultural Resource Platform (C.R.P) to the community therefore brings great relief to hardworking farmers whose gains are lost after changing many hands of middlemen and exploitative buyers. The portal is also called (Soko Pepe) in Swahili.

 A week after my arrival at Sipili, I attended a group meeting by small scale business people who have come together to combine their efforts in addressing their common challenges. All the members in attendance were women and this could attest to the fact that women have been empowered to run their own affairs equally, as men. At first I thought it was a women's only affair, I later learnt that there are some male members, but the participation of over 15 women in attendance was impressive. The chairperson who is a man, was out on other urgent group business.

The group so called Lengo Letu Self help Group, was started over 15 years ago and has a number of 23 members . It was started solely to bring together like minded individuals who had things to do in common. At first they went round visiting each member's home to survey and inspect their farms and the activities done there . Each member contributed small amount of money . As time went by, they conceived an idea of starting a micro-finance, to enhance their small scale business activities and farming.

The 23 members contributed money to a pool, raising over one hundred thousand Kenya shillings. The amount is then advanced to individual members in form of loans repayable with a small interest, “With our small business in the market, we are able to repay the loan without chasing members up and down”. Said one of the members during the meeting.
The presence and accessibility to such a loaning facility has enabled members to start small business especially buying and selling Agricultural produce i.e. cereals, fruits and vegetables which they trade at Sipili market.

In spite of limited availability of funds, the group has worked hard beating all odds to acquire plots and developing them. The group obtain cereals from large scale traders and transporters who have the capacity to buy and transport the stuff from far places where prices are low. Maize, beans and other cereals are brought from as far as Kitale and Lodiani districts. For now members of Lengo Letu can only afford to buy in small quantities due to the small amounts of capital and lack of access to external forms of credit. They have also started practicing agri-business i.e. growing of valuable and commercial crops like grain Amaranth and fruits.

 Their efforts are however faced with challenges ranging from drought, lack of sufficient capital, poor access to good markets on time, lack of access to external credit facilities and food shortages hindering smooth repayment of loans to their group's micro-finance.

 I had visited them to deliver the news of Agricultural Commodity Resource platform, also called (Soko Pepe) in Swahili. The role of the CKC is mainly documenting and disseminating information into the community. On learning of the new marketing opportunity, Members of LENGO LETU SELF HELP GROUP were optimistic on exploiting available opportunities that comes with the portal to expand their economic activities and enhance their social-economic life.

“Lengo letu” is a Swahili word meaning (Our goal) it's no doubt the group was formed with the goal of uniting like minded people to join hands in the struggle to realize development and give a concerted efforts to the fight against poverty. The C.K.C was established in partnership between a local Community Based Organized (C.B.O) called Laikipia Center for Knowledge and Information (LACKIN) and a Nairobi based international Network; the Arid Lands Information Network (ALIN). C.R.P is promoted by ALIN and LACKIN through Ngarua Community Knowledge Centre (C.K.C).

 Some members got a chance to learn more about the Community Knowledge Center “we have been seeing the office but we have never taken effort to know exactly what takes place inside” said one woman in the meeting. I took that chance to explain to them further about the progress of the C.K.C.

 The most captivating news to Lengo letu self help group was that of Soko Pepe which would be of tremendous help in marketing their agricultural produce, through creation of external linkages with other potential business associates: buyers, sellers and other service providers from other parts of the country.

Members learnt of other information channels from ALIN i.e. through journals like the Baobab and Kilimo Endelevu Africa Internet, the Open Knowledge Network (O.K.N), Computer training's , Field days, Exchange Visits, etc. They welcomed the news of the free issues of the magazines and asked me to register them so that they can be receiving them. Many promised to be visiting the C.K.C for more information.

What originally was a familiarization and orientation meeting, it turned out to be a serious involvement where a strong bond was established between the group, Lackin, ALIN and Ngarua C.K.C. However, some group members had already registered while some did not really know much about the C.K.C and services available.

The meeting was organized courtesy of one of the LACKIN's member Mr. Mwangi Kichuki who introduced me to one of the group's member. Who latter came to pick me at the C.K.C to attend that meeting. It's no doubt the rapport created at the meeting forged a good working relationship between the group and the C.K.C.

There are high prospects of success owing to the way LENGO LETU is very organized, they hold monthly meetings on the third Sunday of every month in a designated office at Sipili market . They urged me to be free to attend their meetings so as to update them on new developments since they would like to receive a lot of information on development.

By 

BETT KIPSANG.

ALIN FIELD OFFICER, 

NGARUA C.K.C. 

Ngarua CKC an important Resource center.

Ngarua CKC is located at Sipili market in Ngarua division of Laikipia district. The center serves the community of Sipili through provision of information in books, magazines and other online materials.

In March 2010, a student from the University of Nairobi visited and identified some books which he said were very resourceful to him in his studies. The student by the name Evan Mathangari Njaramba, browed three books namely: ‘‘Guidelines for upgrading informal settlement, A summary of key investment opportunities in Kenya and Surface water drainage for low income communities’’.

When he brought back the books, Njaramba could not hide his pleasure and satisfaction. He came with a written note as follows, ‘‘These books provided good information relevant to urban and regional planning, the course I am taking in the University of Nairobi. Ngarua CKC is therefore an important resource center for passing information to the community in order to empower them and build their capacity to do more”.

Marketing Taken a Step Higher

Marketing is one of the most profitable niches to anyone who knows how to take advantage of the supply, demand and need of the consumer on any type of product. In Ng'arua, there is a problem with middlemen taking advantage of the poor producers, who have no other option but to operate through the middleman as there is no alternative market. It is for this reason that new marketing systems are developed in order to ensure that the producer gets more of a fair price for their products.

‘Tele-marketing’ as it has come to be known by the locals of Ng’arua Division is one of the systems that has been established to try and eliminate exploitation of the producer by the middleman. This system will be to the benefit of the community in this area. They have managed to increase production of crops through rainwater harvesting.

What is the 'Tele-marketing’ system?
This is not the system’s original name but has come to be known so in this region to enhance simplicity in explaining the system to the locals. The system is originally referred to as the Agricultural Commodity Platform System (A.C.P.S.).

This is a system aimed at bringing different people together in relation to markets and marketing of products and or commodities. This system has been introduced to this region by the Arid Lands Information Network (ALIN) in conjunction with Virtual City, a company that deals with making of marketing systems for different companies depending on their marketing strategies. This is the first system of its kind that is being introduced to directly deal with the community in the rural setting.

Training was first carried out to enlighten the community representatives in the Ng’arua Community Knowledge Centre (CKC) on the need, use and general operation of the system. Ng’arua CKC will benefit from the system because this will increase the number and diversity of clients who visit the centre on a daily basis. This category of clients is most likely to be made up of the older people in the society who are mainly farmers.

How to install the system
The system has two major components:

A Smart Phone
This is a phone that has improved capability compared to a normal phone. Additional features include increased connectivity such as BlueTooth and infrared, a memory card, a touch screen. The smartphone operates much like a small handheld computer. It size makes it portable and fairly user-friendly. In the marketing context, the phone is referred to as a P.D.A –Personal Digital Assistant. The PDA is the one that will be used by the field officer to register the details of the people involved in the product marketing chain. These include traders, farmers, transporters and other service providers.

The PDA will be handed over to the Field Officer who will have to :
>Collect information on farm produce. The information is stored in the PDA
>Register the necessary people and groups in the market chain of a product
>Try and enlighten farmers /producers on better packaging of their produce for a better market
>Try and give general advice to farmers

Commodity Resource Platform (CRP)
This system is more of a computer but with most of its systems disabled, so that it only works as a server for the Agricultural Commodity Platform. The CRP is a machine that will be in the office and unlike the PDA it is not portable and so cannot be taken to the field. However information can be registered or entered into the CRP without using the PDA. This may include farming tips, events, products and bids. Registration can also be done directly in the CRP without the use of the PDA. The CRP can either work online or offline - with or without internet connection.

Any information entered into the PDA is later transferred to the CRP through a process known as synchronization. The CRP allows the user to access the latest market information such as new bids, commodities, prices as well as any reports or debates. The system is usually operated by an administrator who performs a number of duties. These duties include co-coordination of the system, regularly synchronizing data, updating information and helping users to access the system.

Through the pre-installation trainings conducted in the CKC, many were able to understand how the system works. The training was useful since previously many thought of the new technology as only for the young and educated in the Ng’arua Community. The one-on-one training allowed them to understand the system and see that it is not difficult to operate.

Issues
The PDA is also a very fragile phone and requires a lot of care when being handled, especially when in the field as repair and maintenance is very expensive. Security is also an issue. The system also needs to be backed up with a reliable source of power to ensure that it is always operational even with the frequent power black-outs.

Another major problem will be to do with access. The system requires registered people to subscribe to content via e-mail or mobile phone in order to receive information. Each individual in the product marketing chain will therefore be required to have an e-mail account or a mobile phone in order to access the information which does not include everyone in the community. In addition, only registered members with a username and password will be able to buy and or sell their products. Non-registered members can only access information and cannot sell or buy anything through the system. Those registered will also have a chance to access latest bids on commodities as well as product prices in different parts of the country. In addition, usage of the system requires at least basic computer literacy which does not apply to all of the people in the community.

Advantages
However once joined, the platform is very convenient in that it can accommodate images thus giving a clear picture of a commodity or service. It also allows interaction through the discussion board or forum increasing the sharing of information. The system also enables networking and creation of lasting relationships in terms of products marketing.

In addition, there will be a general reduction of middlemen exploitation as buyers and sellers can interact directly. Moreover, demand can be easily established by checking the system thus allowing for better planning and pricing of products. This can then lead to increased production of more commercially viable products. In time, this will lead to improved livelihoods within the community.

One of a kind
Tele-marketing has been used by various companies to sell and buy products. Virtual City has developed a number of such systems for companies in the country. However, the system has not been taken to the community and this system in Ng’arua will be the first to deal directly with the producer in the rural setting.

The Way Forward
The use of A.C.P.S. for marketing will be improved on an individual basis because the system will be in a central information centre in the CKC. People visiting the centre will also have an opportunity to learn more and access other information through the internet or through borrowing books and periodicals. There is also need to strengthen collaboration among different parties in product marketing chain in the community to facilitate collective marketing for better pricing.

RAIN WATER HARVESTING IN NG'ARUA REGION

Due to the minimal amount of rainfall that the area receives, the residents of this region have adapted a new way to have water for their household use and for watering crops in their farms. This water is harvested from roof tops and from run off water whenever it rains.The water is stored in reservoirs for use when need arises, during the dry spells of the year. This is also helpful because it has so far reduced over-dependence on relief food.

NGARUA COMMUNITY KNOWLEDGE CENTRE

Ng'arua community knowledge centre is situated in Rift Valley Province of Kenya and in the newly created Laikipia West District. The centre is approximately 65 Kilometers from Nyahururu Town. The area is mostly dominated by Kikuyus , while the Pokots occupy a very small area. The region is relatively dry with an annual rainfall of 40mm. This is a problem as it limits the agricultural productivity of the region which leads to a deficit in food, and means that many cannot sell any produce which is the main method of livelihood. However, the community has managed to get around the erratic and decreasing amounts of rainfall by storing water via rain water harvesting. This has enabled many to continue to sustain their livelihood through farming and means they no longer rely solely on rainfall.

Key agricultural produce in Ng'arua consists of maize, beans, peas, potatoes, tomatoes, french beans, kale and cabbages. Fruit includes pineapples, passion fruit, mangoes and oranges. There is a also widespread growing of herbs and production of herbal medicine as an alternative source of income. Livestock kept by farmers in this area include cows, goats, poultry and sheep.

The centre is one of the Arid Lands Information Network project, aimed at equipping the residents with information and new technologies on topics relevant to their needs in relation to the place. The centre was established in the year 2005, and is so far the most active centre compared to other centres of its kind in the three countries that ALIN operates in; Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. The centre is also one of the busiest, with a minimum of twenty visitors per day.

The visitors come to the centre with need for, internet services, lending books to acquire knowledge and to learn the basic computer packages. ALIN operates in the arid and semi-arid areas of Eastern Africa and thus aims at equipping communities living in this areas with information through the internet publication of books, magazines and periodicals on issues that affect them and on the other hand try to improve their livelihoods by having them incorporated into the information sharing platform.