A new climate-smart agriculture project backed by FAO and the Green Climate Fund is set to transform key value chains like dairy, tea, and African leafy vegetables in Kenya’s Lake Region over the next six years.

143,000 Farmers to Benefit from New Climate Resilience Project in Western Kenya
Photo Credit FAO on X

The ‘Transforming Livelihoods through Climate Resilient, Low Carbon, Sustainable Agricultural Value Chains in the Lake Region Economic Block’ project commenced with a two-day inception workshop held in Kisumu on 7 and 8th July 2025 where stakeholders met to discuss their shared vision of collective and inclusive action for effective project implementation.

Funded by the Green Climate Fund (GCF), with additional co-financing mobilized through the Government of Denmark, The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), and the Government of Kenya, this project seeks to implement a transformation of agricultural value chains towards low-carbon, climate resilient pathways through locally-led approaches.

“The project proposes a set of practices designed to improve the farmers’ adaptive capacity, by making these assets and social safety nets available and accessible. This is to prevent losses and sustainably increase productivity as a means of improving resilience to climate change,” said Hamisi Williams, Assistant FAO Representative in Kenya (Programmes).

In addition to deeply understanding the project, the stakeholders discussed the target group selection criteria, environmental and social safeguards, gender approaches as well as the monitoring and evaluation framework.

The focus is on six priority value chains namely dairy, poultry, coffee, tea, fruit trees and African leafy vegetables, with the intention to transfer and upscale both adaptation and mitigation technology at each value chain’s production, harvesting, processing, and marketing stages.

This project is set to run for six years, and will be implemented in the 14 counties of the Lake Regional Economic Block (LREB). County officials from LREB discussed the different value chains among the six priority ones that were relevant to their respective communities, with each of them outlining the current status and pathways for interventions.

72% of the workforce in this region work in the agriculture sector and are currently left exposed from the effects of climate variability. The farmers’ capacity to adapt to the erratic weather patterns is low, as many of them grow food on small parcels of lands characterized with low productivity as well as increased pressure on land and natural resources leading to degraded ecosystems.

‘LREB aims to coordinate and facilitate service delivery as well as promote trade linkages, investment, and economic activity. We will equally enhance public investment, promote developmental research and innovation in social planning and coordination of activities. The body will also promote policy development as well as scale up resource mobilization by creating communities of practice and centres of excellence to leverage on the regional’s natural resources potentials,’ said Victor Nyagaya, the Chief Executive Officer- LREB.

A total of 143,000 smallholder farmers will be reached through FAO-led Farmer Field Schools and via cooperatives while incorporating gender-sensitive support and creating replicable models for other regions to ensure lasting impact beyond the duration of the project.

The project will be delivered through FAO as an accredited entity, with FAO and Agriterra as co-Executing Entities, while the Government of Kenya will execute the activities, they are co-financing.

“By working through cooperatives and farmer organisations, this project will accelerate the adoption of climate-smart practices and technologies. It will also strengthen the social fabric that holds rural communities together, creating networks that will continue to grow beyond the life of the project. These efforts are grounded in practical experience and guided by data and evidence,” said Marco Schouten, CEO of Agriterra.

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https://farmerstrend.co.ke/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/GvZHwz-WwAAsTfc-1024x678.jpeghttps://farmerstrend.co.ke/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/GvZHwz-WwAAsTfc-150x150.jpegFarmersTrend# TrendingAfrican leafy vegetables,agricultural value chains,Agriterra Kenya,climate change adaptation Kenya,climate resilience in farming,climate-smart agriculture Kenya,dairy farming Kenya,FAO Kenya,Farmer Field Schools,food security Kenya,Green Climate Fund Kenya,inclusive agriculture Kenya,Kenya agriculture development,Kenya climate resilience project,Lake Region Economic Block,low carbon farming,LREB agriculture project,smallholder farmers Kenya,sustainable agriculture,tea farming KenyaA new climate-smart agriculture project backed by FAO and the Green Climate Fund is set to transform key value chains like dairy, tea, and African leafy vegetables in Kenya’s Lake Region over the next six years.The ‘Transforming Livelihoods through Climate Resilient, Low Carbon, Sustainable Agricultural Value Chains in the...New Generation Culture in Agriculture