Results-based M&E in Agricultural Projects and Value Addition on Household Food Security, Murang’a County, Kenya

Abstract

This research study examined the influence of value addition on agricultural projects for households’ food security in Murang’a County. Value addition process brings potential changes to food agricultural production which provides addition value to agricultural produce in marketing a product, filling a market niche, simplifying the supply chain, offering a service, reducing expenses, and other methods (Guevara & Daleo, 2018. Worldwide, governments continue to face severe challenges on food security, both urban and rural Kenya have been affected. The purpose of this study was to establish the influence of monitoring and evaluation of agricultural-based projects on household food security in Murang’a County. Among the study objectives was to determine whether Monitoring of agricultural-based projects value addition has any influence on household food security in Murang’a. Result-based Monitoring and Evaluation strategy was used as it has been widely used by development agencies since the 1990s. Value addition methods were also applied to help provide longevity, curb, and reduce spoilage of food whose lifespan is short. Research methodology sort to inform the study used pragmatic paradigm, with both qualitative and quantitative research methods. Researcher used descriptive survey and correlational designs. An interview guide and structured questionnaires were main methods used to collect data. Descriptive and inferential statistics are used to analyze quantitative data. A paired sample t-test was used to evaluate the study's hypothesis after thematic analysis of the qualitative data. The Pearson Correlation Coefficient and simple and multiple linear regression models were used to determine the relationships between independent and dependent variables. The findings revealed meaningful associations between (1) M&E input process and household food security, and (2) M&E activities and household food security. The study concludes that value addition acts as a moderator and results-based agricultural projects have a major impact on household food security. The results of this study should help household heads, local leaders, agricultural extension offices, and government and donor agencies to generalize and adopt results-based M&E agriculture practices and value addition to improve household food security through the insightful information from the study. The findings realized that results-based agriculture projects and value-adding techniques were essential in making well-informed decisions about household food security. In conclusion, training and encouraging households to shift their attitudes towards education and crucial knowledge of monitoring and evaluating practices would ultimately guaranteeing enhanced produce output and food security for households.