Water Brings Agriculture Back to Kenya

Kenya faces several threats to agricultural production. Currently, more than 80 percent of Kenya’s land is arid or semi-arid, and this percentage is increasing. Climate change is causing long periods of drought and periods of heavy rainfall. In addition, Kenya has a high rate of deforestation and the subsequent low forest cover is exacerbating the droughts. Plus, the water in more and more boreholes in the coastal zone are excessively saline, which makes it less suitable for irrigation. When the water is used, the salt slowly builds up at the surface and this reduces the crop yield and degrades the land.

Analysis and selection

The Water for Food consortium started this challenging project by prescanning and analysing water and land resources in the coastal zone of Kenya. It came up with a list of 19 interventions ranging from 3R applications  (increased water recharge, retention, reuse) to fish farming and agroforestry ecosystem fertigation. It selected the most promising ones in terms of business case potential and local market demand. The interventions should ultimately result in the production of nutritious food for the coastal population, an increase in tree cover, and a reduction in deforestation. The selected cases were:

• tree fertigation in agroforestry and reforestation;
• storage interventions in-stream and off-stream: rainwater harvesting, ponds, and bank storage;
• stopping erosion (contour bunds and gully plugs);
• farmer-managed natural regeneration (FMNR);
• 3R interventions;
• diversified farming (seed preparation, bio-compost, quality seedlings);
• maximising ecological interaction and biomass production;
• vertical diversity of agroforestry matrix subcanopy, understory shrubs and forest floor; and,
• cover crops (fodder) and constant mulching.

Three locations

The consortium implemented the interventions at three locations: Arabuko, Marikano, and Koromi. Various water and agriculture interventions were selected, based on an inclusive Water-Agri Monitoring, Reporting, and Evaluation framework, at these locations, and investments were made in hardware (e.g. tanks and ponds); services (e.g. geohydrologist services, soil, and water testing); consumables (e.g. tree and vegetable seedlings); and, training and labour (e.g. farm manager, farm staff, construction labour).

Arabuko

The first location, Arabuko Farm, has dry land and deep salty groundwater. The consortium constructed rainwater harvesting systems and storage from the slope and the road. It also tested different crop varieties, such as drought-resistant fruit crops and cover crops, and used suitable growth models controlled with a soil mix medium. This was all done to stop the run-off, by using suitable cover crops and controlling the retention and recharging of water on location. Relying on the FAO expert's advice, the consortium purchased materials and equipment for small-scale no-input catfish farming and reused the aquaculture effluents to fertigate natural trees. Further, enriched compost was produced by using green manure (from cover crops and pruning, fruit, and wood), chicken manure and wood chips from local carpenters.

Marikano

Marikano is a riverside location that is affected by salt and water stress. The consortium took soil and water samples and monitored the soil conditions, flooding etc. With local input, it monitored a mixture of various crops (including new forage grasses and fruit trees) in soils with various salt gradients, combined with natural tree species. Unfortunately, extreme rainfall led to waterlogging which hampered the work, some of which had to be aborted.

Koromi

The outcomes at the other locations led the consortium to adapt its plans. The river dam that had been built for water storage was removed and replaced by uphill basins for rain and river water collection. Water for forest irrigation is now being harvested during the rainy season from the outflow and seasonal river flow. Solar powered pumps were tested on farms. Bart Pauwels, the Agricultural Counsellor for Kenya and Tanzania, visited the project in July 2023 and was impressed by the consortium’s approach.

Capacity building

As part of the project, two training courses were given to groups of 30 small-scale farmers. The courses covered the following topics: organic compost production; fruit tree irrigation schemes; low tech low investment fish farming; low tech low investment water infrastructure design; and, water-efficient horticulture and tree nurseries. Several BSc and MSc graduate students from Van Larenstein, WUR and Maastricht School of Management also attended the training courses.

Decision on the upscale region

Of the three locations, Koromi seems to have the highest upscaling potential, allowing more water and restoring groundwater, but in-depth analyses still needs to be carried out shortly. The consortium planted new trees after having determined the optimal density and testing seeds and seedlings. They will run further tests to find the best way to support the ecological foundation, water balance, biodiversity, and carbon capture by replanting a variety of beneficial vegetation and carrying out ecological adaptations (e.g. creating more ponds, swales, and blue elements), so a larger area becomes more resilient to droughts, flooding, pests, and erosion. They will:

• reduce further water runoff & soil erosion
• maximise interaction between species  
• optimise biomass production (timber and non-timber)
• adapt ecological structures and functioning (e.g. habitat connectivity, niche diversification, mutual plant-fungi-animal interactions, etc.).

The consortium produced a preliminary business model for each identified business case and for the two scale-up phases (from 2024 onwards). For the model, they calculated the Return on Investment and payback period for several business cases (timber, fish, honey, and the land itself).

Key outcomes

Results have already been achieved in several areas. To name a few: approximately 50 percent less water use for irrigation; an increase in the survival rate of seedlings of roughly 20 percent; ending the use of chemical fertilizers; and, reduced labour costs by carrying out grass cutting, mulching etc.

Some other achievements:

• Water stress: there is a higher availability of irrigation water due to the two basins, and the survival rate of seedlings has increased.
• Water quality in agricultural land: fish manure added as a fertiliser to irrigation systems, less erosion and reduced sediment loads downhill.
• Biomass and raw materials: more green manure (grass and cover crops), brown manure (twigs, leaves, sawdust), chicken manure, and natural fertilisers have been produced and are being used in seedling production.
• Soil quality (level of acidity, salt content, water level): an increase in organic matter and new opportunities to directly optimise growth, the timing of growth, fruit development, planting densities, and the amount of water irrigated.

Commercially, the consortium addressed no less than 13 opportunities in several areas, such as rainwater harvesting and reuse of discharge water, large-scale timber production, and the production of natural fertilisers.

Although the project is still in its early phases, the experts involved identified clear benefits in nutrition, local value addition, ecosystems, carbon, water, and biodiversity, as well as in direct and indirect employment (such as the right incentives, add-ons, and Corporate Social Responsibility).

Future steps

The consortium produced a business model for a combination of 3R interventions, ecosystem restoration, agroforestry, commercial forestry, and fish farming, which is highly scalable at a relatively low cost. The time it takes to achieve a positive cash flow is almost halved when working with forest products other than wood, as well as fish farming in rainwater harvesting basins. The consortium is looking forward with a great deal of confidence. Funding has been released to create more small-scale set-ups and capacity-building. The Agricultural Counsellor in Kenya’s visit also led to the development of a follow-up agroforestry project that has now been defined and will be funded. In addition, the consortium is continuing its talks with the Dutch Good Growth Fund (DGGF), private companies and investors. In the next phase, it will upscale the regeneration activities at the Koromi location from 200 hectares to 2,000 hectares.

The Water for Food Programme

The Water for Food Programme’s mission is to increase global food security by catalysing the development of water-related business cases in the agri-food sector, leading to improved efficiency in water management in agriculture. The cross-sectoral approach and the focus on financially viable local business cases in the most promising markets are crucial elements of the Programme.

The Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature, and Food Quality finances the Programme and NWP operates as a neutral coordinator and facilitator, focusing on the Programme’s goals and executing its components.

Victor Langenberg of Acacia Water concludes: 'Optimising agriculture brought us very far and fame, but somewhere along the line, we forgot the intrinsic value of water as being the key driver and the only medicine for reversing degraded lands. Water and agriculture are inextricably linked. We were able to show how arranging water in regenerative agroforestry can tip a lost system back into its former glory faster, and that’s just wonderful. The Programme brought us further and helped us think more in terms of business opportunities for poor farmers. We hope that our message will be picked up by those who wish to restore vast areas with more farmers. Thanks to the Programme, we now have a living demo, a viable example near Malindi in Kenya, that inspires and gives hope and that anybody can visit. The demo offers practical alternatives to so many subsistence farmers.'