Drylands Of Kenya Research Articles

Intervention model for sustainable household food security in the drylands of Kenya: Case study of Makueni district

Intervention model for sustainable household food security in the drylands of Kenya: Case study of Makueni district

Intervention model for sustainable household food security in the drylands of Kenya: Case study of Makueni district

A chronic problem of household food insecurity in Kenya is concentrated in the rural drylands constituting two-thirds of the country’s land mass. Drought is cited as the main culprit, aggravated by inappropriate policy, such as the Structural Adjustment Programmes (SAPs) of the 1990s, said to have created an institutional vacuum in the provision of various agricultural services in Kenya. The combined effect has been erosion of farm productivity and food security of households. The potential of external intervention to bridge the service gap has been demonstrated by strong support from donor organizations. However, there is need to identify effective strategies and processes for attaining the food security objective. The research in this dissertation contributes by providing an intervention model for sustainable household food security in the drylands of Kenya. The research used ex-post evaluation of multiple intervention case studies in order to compare and identify most effective strategies. The cases were selected in Makueni, one of the dryland districts having the highest level (70 percent) of food insecurity in the country. A “with” and “without” intervention comparative approach was used in which the food security outcomes (farm productivity, non-farm income and food energy acquisition) were compared between a ‘treatment’ and a ‘control’ group. To understand the processes behind observed impacts of an intervention, the designs of the interventions were also analysed. The results from the analysis showed that only two of the five cases studies had significant impact on household food security. Emerging effective strategies were integration of irrigation with access to inputs, credit and output markets. But non-farm strategies, such as trading opportunities were highly preferred by households for stabilising incomes. An emerging key intervention objective is to raise farm aggregate incomes to the relative poverty line. The implication for future intervention planning is integration of irrigation, markets and non-farm income-generating strategies with the ultimate objective of raising household income at least to the relative poverty line; through the three-level linkages provided in the research.

Planning and Environmental Risk in Kenyan Drylands

An evaluation is made of Kenyan government programs in arid and semi-arid areas which comprises 83% of the country. A description is given of the land base demography and traditional land uses. 6 ecological zones were established to reflect rainfall evapotranspiration and environmental potential. The driest zones are Zone IV V and VI in increasing order of dryness. Agricultural and pastoral lifestyles predominate. The national growth rate of 4% has resulted in pressure to occupy marginal areas. 3 million people inhabit Zones IV V and VI and another 1-1.5 million the dry areas of Zone III. Population growth rates are less than the national average in these zones; nonetheless there was deterioration of land resources overgrazing and famine. The premise is that adjustments to unpredictable natural hazards and human exploitation of natural resources were not the causes of deterioration but rather were interventions which disrupted the traditional system of hazard response. The programs increased the risk of living in these zones. Adjustments to deteriorating conditions have varied i.e. for pastoralist Masai have adopted cultivation and agro-pastoralists have begun to sell livestock and other available commodities. Changes in practices also involved intricate grazing cycles or avoiding insect-infested areas. The planning and policy-making to address poverty and land deterioration between the mid-1950s and 1983 are described. Development was based on a hierarchical system and spread widely in government to accomplish many activities. There were constraints to implementation; for those projects initiated in 1982-83 the constraints are identified and include mobilization of local support and establishment of local planning. The Kenyan government and European consultants found that integrated rural development schemes didnt work using the Machakos an Kitui projects as examples. Sustainable development has also suffered from worldwide recession the structure of the agricultural economy the development emphasis on the district level shifting donor priorities the weak link of dry lands to infrastructure and the national economy and other national Ministry changes.