Our vision is of a prosperous rural Africa. Over 80% of Africans living in rural areas rely on the food they grow and the animals they keep to survive. FARM-Africa works in partnership with rural communities to develop the potential of their land, animals and natural resources. Our aims are:
- To make farmers more productive through enhanced farming techniques and organisation into farmers’ groups
- To increase the productivity of crops and livestock
- To create market linkages, enabling smallholder farmers to sell their surplus profitably and generate trade and enterprise
FARM-Africa is about wealth creation. We open access to markets so smallholder farmers can grow their way out of subsistence living and become rural entrepreneurs. Profit from sold produce means families can afford food and medical care, parents can educate their children and communities can invest in further and more profitable business. Our range of sustainable models and interventions put farmers in control of their own futures, permanently.
For example, in Nakasongola, Uganda, our introduction of virus-resistant, drought-tolerant cassava varieties raised yields from 1 tonne to 9 tonnes per hectare. Small-scale farmers previously dependent on food aid achieved food security and they now market 70% of their produce. In Kiambu, Kenya, we have supported farmers to grow and market indigenous vegetables, such as kale and eggplant, which had fallen out of popularity and were no longer widely cultivated. The average gross margin for ¼ acre (the size of an average smallholding in the area) saw an increase of 335% compared to the production of more conventional vegetables such as cabbage and tomatoes. Our project rekindled consumer interest in traditional crops and demand continues to be high.
FARM-Africa links smallholders directly to markets so they can receive a higher price for their produce. Onion farmers in Nyeri, Kenya, have formed ‘commercial villages’ thanks to FARM-Africa’s support, shifting part of their farming system from subsistence to commercial production. Organised into groups, farmers now bulk their onions and bargain as a cooperative, cutting out the middlemen who previously crippled their trade. Income has since risen exponentially: the 800kg yield from a one-acre onion plot would previously fetch £70 when sold. Thanks to bulk storage and group marketing techniques, the same crop now sells for around £700, a ten-fold increase. One onion farmer said: “I used to work on people’s farms as a casual labourer and life was difficult. But when this project was initiated, my family’s lives changed for the better. I can now earn almost KSh 100,000 (£870) from my onion farming. I have also managed to buy a water tank at a cost of KSh 25,000 (£219) and I have even built my own house.
“FARM-Africa is especially important because it supports locally relevant and scalable demonstrations of what works. FARM-Africa is helping to solve rural poverty in Africa and for this reason I am personally proud to support [its] work.” - Kofi A. Annan
Registered Charity No. 326901