One Acre Fund

FARM SUPPORT FOR THE FUTURE

One Acre Fund is a unique organisation with a base mission to help grow the farming communities in Kenya and beyond. We speak to Kelvin Owino, Africa Communications Manager, to learn more

Writer: Marcus Kääpä | Project Manager: Kyle Livingstone

Having grown up in a farming community in Western Kenya, I saw and experienced first-hand the challenges that farmers go through. I’ve felt inspired every day over the last eight years to have been working with One Acre Fund, and in doing so, helped support smallholder farmers throughout Kenya.”

In his position as Africa Communications Manager, Kelvin Owino leads the One Acre Fund field communication team. His background in the agriculture industry has taught him many things, but most of all, has helped shape his vision of Kenyan farming for the future.

“I always dreamt of finding ways to address the challenges of the sector, and so I was very excited when I got

the opportunity to work directly with farmers through One Acre Fund,” he reflects fondly. “One Acre Fund is an agricultural service provider that’s investing in the betterment of rural Africa.

“We bring high-quality farm inputs, financing, and training directly to smallholder farmers to help increase their crop yields and incomes.”

AFRICA OUTLOOK:

CAN YOU TELL US A BIT ABOUT YOUR PAST AND INTRODUCTION INTO ONE ACRE FUND?

Kelvin Owino, Africa

Communications Manager: “I have grown up in the agricultural sphere but took a path into teaching at a later date. I taught maths and physics at a secondary school for two years, and then in university I studied community development.

“After university, I worked with AVSI, which helps children who are in need and live in poorer areas of Nairobi. There, I was Assistant Communications and Database Officer, and following this in 2013 I began working for One Acre Fund. Within six months, I was promoted to Communications Associate, before moving into my current management position.

“What first drew me to One Acre Fund was its mission - I applied because they work with the community. I had always wanted to (and still do) work at community level, and they were also working with farmers that I can relate to. My family are active farmers in the agriculture space, and I felt that if I could do something related to farming and working in the community, then that would be the perfect job for me, and here I am today!”

ONE ACRE FUND

The organisation currently operates in eight countries: Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Burundi, Malawi, Ethiopia, Uganda and Zambia, serving more than 1.3 million households in total.

“We’ve employed more than 8,400 full time staff, most of whom work as extension officers supporting farmers directly in the villages where we operate,” Owino continues. “We expect to directly serve at least 10 million farmers by 2030 through partnerships with governments and private-sector stakeholders.”

In Kenya alone, One Acre Fund operates in 23 counties serving over 600,000 clients. On average, the farmers it works with see crop yields more than double after enrolling with the organisation, as evidenced in 2020 when incomes were 65 percent higher than peers in the industry who had not enrolled. This surplus income helped towards investments in education and school fees for the children of the communities, as well as entrepreneurship and business startups, home improvements, facilitating access to healthcare services, and investing in further agricultural assets such as livestock.

“What is most exciting in light of this, is that this year we have set up retail shops in the villages across the regions where we operate,” Owino says. “The retail shops enable us to provide farmers with access to quality inputs all-year-round and allow us to reach a section of clients that we’ve not been able to serve in the past.”

COVID-19

Despite the positivity of One Acre Fund’s mission, the organisation has not operated without meeting obstacles along the way.

According to Owino, COVID-19 has had a huge impact on the Kenyan agricultural sector. As a result of

Grain Bulk Handlers Limited

At Grain Bulk Handlers Limited (GBHL) we are proud to be associated with One Acre Fund (OAF).

We have provided OAF with our logistics support starting from fertiliser vessel discharge, handling at our terminal, bagging in large and smaller sizes, warehousing and delivery.

OAF is very precise with the fertiliser supply schedule, provides clear planning, vessel arrival, quantities and bag sizes. The plantation season cannot be missed. The end user, the farmer, is the heart of this supply chain operation, his satisfaction and ability to plant at the right time drives the whole process.

Our solutions have constantly evolved over the years to suit OAF needs and to reduce the costs of logistics providing affordable agricultural products to the East African farmer.

OAF’s approach to improving the life on the African continent is great and deserves all the support. OAF, by providing seeds, fertiliser, training, and financing all to the way to the farmer’s doorstep, has reduced all the hassle a farmer has to go through before thinking of using nutrients to increase his yield.

We also congratulate OAF on the one million farmers that they have reached in 2021 and wish them a continuous success in their mission.

OAF will always have the assurance of GBHL support, and our exceptional service to grow the fertiliser import volumes and quality into the region and the associated benefits to the African farmer families and global economy.

www.grainbulk.com

Efficient and cost-effective handling solutions for dry bulk cargo handling in East Africa

Grain Bulk Handlers Limited is a proud Kenyan company with thirst to invest in modern and efficient handling solutions, with our clients we work on their needs and help them to achieve their targets.

Grain Bulk Handlers Limited (GBHL) believes in systemic development reform and has revolutionalized the handling of dry bulk cargo in the entire region. GBHL operates an ecosystem which entails mechanised discharge and handling of bulk loaded vessels, the efficient transfer of grain, fertiliser and other dry bulk to vertical silos and flat storage facilities thus allowing quick turnaround of the vessels. GBHL terminals are constantly evolving around the dynamic needs of the industry, and it contributes to the economic development of the Mombasa port and region with an aim to continue increasing throughput at the Mombasa port with competitive logistics solutions. GBHL services include vessel discharge, handling, bulk cargo transit terminal, bulk storage terminal, warehousing, road and rail transport up to the client premises in bulk or bagged form. GBHL’s vision is to work side by side with the Government of Kenya by contributing towards the economic and social development around the Port of Mombasa and moreover ensuring that Kenya remains a hub to relief agencies, millers, manufacturers and traders to stock sufficient grain, fertilisers and other dry bulk cargo in order to provide a rapid response to regional market needs. GBHL is recognised as ISO (9001;2015), (14001;2015) and (45001:2018), ISPS code compliant and is also a member of the international association of ports and harbours.

Please reach out to us for any of your bulk shipments inquiries.

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pandemic-related social restrictions limiting human movement and social gatherings in order to curb the infection rate, farmers were not able to access the products they needed to produce food on time, and could not sell their produce because markets were closed.

“The global supply chain for essential products like seed and fertiliser were disrupted, which meant that the cost for these inputs was, and still is in some respect, too high and unaffordable to most farmers,” Owino explains.

“However, despite these challenges, I find the current agriculture space exciting. From a One Acre Fund perspective in particular, we have been able to innovate and deploy digital tools to keep serving farmers even with the COVID-19 related restrictions. The pandemic has enabled us to discover and utilise new and more efficient ways of serving farmers that we had previously not even considered.” ONE ACRE FUND

HOW IT WORKS

1. ASSET-BASED LOANS

- Farmers receive high-quality seeds and fertiliser on credit, and One Acre Fund offers a flexible repayment system that allows them to pay back their loans in any amount throughout the loan term.

2. DELIVERY

- One Acre Fund delivers inputs to locations within walking distance of every farmer that it serves.

3. TRAINING

- Farmers receive training throughout the season on modern agricultural techniques.

4. MARKET FACILITATION

- One Acre Fund offers crop storage solutions and teaches farmers about market fluctuations, so that they can time crop sales to maximise profits.

One Acre Fund provides all of these services together, enabling farmers to significantly increase their incomes and build paths to prosperity.

FINANCING

for seed and fertilser

DISTRIBUTION

of farm inputs

TRAINING

on agricultural techniques

MARKET FACILITATION to maximise harvest profits

Agroplast Ltd

Agroplast started as a result of the plastic ban implemented in Rwanda in 2007. The founder, Leon Nduwayezu, started collecting plastic waste with the purpose of transforming it into new materials for productive use in the Rwandan marketplace. Agroplast was founded in 2015, and is currently producing tubes for nursery plants and trash bags out of recycled plastic.

We produce tubes for nurseries in the width of 6cm up to 25cm upon request. We also customise the colour depending on the preference of the client. Tubes are sold per Kg and can be purchased on a roll or as single sealed tubes in customised length.

We produce trash bags in various sizes and in different colours depending on the clients preference. Trash bags can be bought per Kg or per piece.

We provide sheets to cover nurseries customised to the need of our clients.

AGROPLAST Ltd | Kigali, Kicukiro, Gahanga. Nunga, Plot 972. P.o Box 3675 Kigali Rwanda. nduluwa@yahoo.fr

“ONE ACRE FUND SUPPLIES SMALLHOLDER FARMERS WITH THE FINANCING AND TRAINING THEY NEED TO GROW MORE FOOD AND EARN MORE MONEY. INSTEAD OF GIVING HANDOUTS, WE INVEST IN FARMERS TO GENERATE A GAIN IN FARM

INCOME” - ONE ACRE FUND

RESHAPING FARMING

One Acre Fund operates in rural areas across multiple countries in Africa, often where access to basic farming products and services is quite challenging to reach or facilitate.

“We provide a full-service package that enables farmers to achieve immediate food security and build pathways to long-term prosperity,” Owino elaborates. “These services include financing (for high-quality farm products such as improved seeds and fertiliser), delivery services (to areas within walking distance of every farm no matter how remotely located), and post-harvest support (such as storage solutions and market access to maximise individual farmers’ incomes from their crops).”

On top of this, One Acre Fund’s full-service package includes the organisation’s investment in soil health management for sustainable farming, and agroforestry to build long-term assets for the smallholder

farmers and communities they each operate in.

Each of these facets of One Acre Fund’s full-service package leads to the aforementioned percentile yield increases which, together with surplus income, mean farmers are able to produce enough food for their families as well as gain additional income.

“We have conducted multiple studies, all of which confirm that most of our farmers invest the surplus income into paying school fees for their children, and buying quality of life products like solar lamps which enable their children to study even at night and thus perform better in school in the long term.”

AFRICA OUTLOOK:

CAN YOU EXPAND ON THE ROLE OF STAFF IN THE SUCCESS OF THE ORGANISATION?

Kelvin Owino, Africa Communications Manager:

“We believe that our staff are our biggest asset. We wouldn’t be able to operate at our scale and deliver the impact that we do without the huge contribution that our staff give every day.

“We have set up internal development programmes to help build the skills and the capacity of our staff, and they are the key to our overall mission of bettering African agriculture for tomorrow and beyond.”

MOVING THE MISSION FORWARD

At One Acre Fund, creating and maintaining a positive impact on farmers remains the “North Star” of the organisation’s mission, and it is determined to support all hardworking smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa.

“We will keep supporting them to continue producing more food, not only to make the continent more agriculturally and food secure, but also to produce a continued surplus yield to feed other parts of the world,” Owino assures us.

“We believe that this is very much achievable, particularly if all stakeholders - governments, the private sector, development partners and donors - consider smallholder farmers as businesspeople, who, when provided with access to the right tools such as high-quality agricultural Tel: 0800723355 www.oneacrefund.org

inputs, farmer training and a market for their produce, will be able to feed the world.”

In addition to its current operations in eight countries, One Acre Fund is also running a pilot project in Nigeria, the goal of which is to reach as many farming families as possible that need such services and support.

“We have plans to continue expanding our programmes in the countries we operate and scale to other countries in the future.”