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Growing Hope: Kenya Tagania Update

Friendship Church has been involved with World Renew’s Growing Hope Globally program since 2004. Located in Meru County, Kenya, the Tagania program is enhancing food security through savings groups, farmer field schools, nutrition, and sanitation. Village savings and lending groups are being formed to help households diversify their sources of income. Farmer Field Schools are teaching conservation agriculture methods, poultry rearing, cultivation of dryland crops, and other strategies that help farmers to reduce their risks in times of drought. Communities are also encouraging better stewardship of water, soil and forest resources. Nutrition education and cooking demonstrations are being included in Farmer Field School activities for improved household diets, and good practices around water, sanitation and hygiene are being taught and encouraged. We hope to include a one-day visit to this area during our next Church to Church partnership trip this coming August.

Published: 2/28/2020

For John, a farmer in drought–prone Tigania, simple practices like drip irrigation and mulching mean earning a good income to care for his family of eight. 

Before joining a farmer group through the program, John depended strictly on rain–fed agriculture. However, prolonged droughts were increasingly causing food and water shortages. He was ready to learn as much as he could about ways to adapt to the drier and drier climate and increase his resilience to weather–related risks. 

He‘s installed a drip irrigation system that requires very little water. Coupled with other conservation agriculture techniques like mulching with organic matter, his soil fertility has improved. He‘s now able to grow food like kale and tomatoes throughout the year, even during a drought. In fact, he‘s stopped growing maize entirely (it isn‘t drought tolerant) in favor of vegetables. What his family doesn‘t eat he can sell, and the money he bring in allows him to buy other foods and meet his farm and household expenses. 

John says, “Thanks to mulching and drip irrigation, I water twice a week instead of every day. The amount of work I have to do has gone down overall, but my results are better. I am happy and hope to expand my farm operations.” 

Thanks to Your Generosity and Support: 

• Farmers are using agricultural techniques that mitigate the risk of crop failure 
• Communities are practicing better stewardship of water, soil, and forest resources 
• More reliable access to clean water makes it possible to improve hygiene and sanitation 

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