Scaling success: leading change with the Syngenta Foundation

by Georgina Smith | Feb 28, 2017

The catalyst for change came from catastrophe in Kenya, when farmers in the western part of the country lost their maize harvest to disease in 2012. At that time, Jacinta Majimbo, a bean farmer from Bungoma district in Western Kenya, could never be sure what her...

All you need is love… and water

by Georgina Smith | Feb 16, 2017

All you need is love... and water ; If you were lucky enough to receive roses this Valentine’s Day, they could well have come from Kenya. Within 24 hours of being cut, millions of roses, like these grown on the banks of the Tana River watershed were whisked off to...

Responding to climate shocks at community level in Kenya

by Georgina Smith | Feb 15, 2017

Responding to climate shocks at community level: new profiles offer Kenya a roadmap ; Kenya has been bracing itself for drought since last year. Three in four Kenyans live in rural areas and depend on agriculture – a sector accounting for half of GDP. County Director...

Snack bars with a winning twist: beans in the international spotlight

by Georgina Smith | Dec 19, 2016

When Harriet Aber entered the LovePulses Showcase competition with her special bean-amaranth energy bar, she never imagined it would take her from Uganda to Chicago. Yet her novel and nutritious snack won her second place in the LovePulses Showcase...

An unlikely weapon against poverty and drought

by Georgina Smith | Dec 16, 2016

Silas Mdoe has a weapon against poverty and drought. It’s so unassuming that most farmers completely overlook it: livestock grass. As this recent study shows, keeping livestock can help farmers like Silas earn more money and put more food on the table, especially...