Young people in Kenya, like in many other parts of the world, do not typically view agriculture as a promising career path. However, despite this perception, agriculture remains the main source of livelihood for 70% of rural households in Kenya, where 65% of the population lives in rural areas.
Martha Otieno, a recent journalism graduate, found herself unemployed in Nairobi and returned to her rural home in Homa Bay County, Kenya, to pursue a farming career. With KES 40,000 in hand, she invested in an acre of watermelons, hoping to earn a living.
Ms Otieno joined a women’s self-help group engaged in small-scale income-generating ventures, where she gained valuable experience and new organizing skills. She taught the group how to cultivate bananas and mangoes on a small scale, and after a few months, she decided to strike out on her own. Ms Otieno hoped to earn KES 300,000 from her first crop, but severe flooding three weeks before harvest destroyed her entire crop.
Undeterred, Ms Otieno enlisted the help of agronomists to find ways to maximize her yield while minimizing risk. She began leasing small portions of land in various parts of Homa Bay County to spread the risk and ensure a steady income.
Since getting into agriculture, Ms Otieno has owned a four-acre tract of land for just over three years. She cultivates watermelons, tomatoes, and capsicums, earning up to KES 300,000 for watermelons and KES 250,000 for tomatoes and capsicums per season, with potential for up to five acres of crops.
As Ms Otieno’s revenue increased, her jobless peers sought her advice on how to succeed in agriculture. Ms Otieno saw an opportunity to develop her ventures while supporting her peers.
