Makueni County Government, through the Department of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, has launched Mifugo Ni Mali Project at the Kwathoka Agriculture Training Centre (ATC), in an effort to boost poultry farming in the area.
The initiative that is being implemented in partnership with the Kenya Commercial Bank Foundation (KCBF), is designed to strengthen poultry production through rigorous farmer training, coaching, and mentoring of farmers in the area.
During the launch, 17 farmers, who included women, youths and people with disabilities, each received 300 vaccinated one-day chicks to kick-start and expand their enterprises.
“I challenge the many unemployed youths to consider poultry farming, which requires only a small place to work from. Please don’t stay at home idle; venture into this business to create wealth,” implored Makueni Deputy Governor Lucy Mulili, who officiated the launch on Monday at the Kwathoka area.
Mulili encouraged women and people with disabilities to take up the work of rearing poultry, saying the government is ready to support them and ensure they succeed in their business.
She disclosed that poultry farming remains the widespread enterprise in Makueni, where approximately 85 percent of farmers from the 2023 data are rearing the birds in the area.
Consequently, the Deputy Governor said that this reflects a growth of 55 percent since 2013, underscoring the sector’s rising contribution to household incomes, as well as food and nutrition security.
“The Statistical Abstract data, validated in 2023, indicates that the poultry subsector was valued at Sh3.77 billion, supported by 1.57 million birds,” she observed.
According to the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), KCB Foundation will support the growth of small and medium enterprises through business development with an aim of creating wealth and employment among the youth and women.
The County Government will provide extension services, veterinary support and access to cold-chain and vaccine-handling infrastructure to participating farmers, strengthening production and disease control at the grassroots.
The KCB Human Resource Manager, Cleopas Ambira, intends to support farmers by funding them and ensuring they create wealth in order to uplift their living standards.
Ambira said that their working together with the County Government and Kenchic will ensure the farmers are linked to the market so that they can find a place to sell their produce and hence achieve their goal.
The County Executive Committee Member (CECM) for Agriculture and Livestock, Elizabeth Muli, said that the Department has intensified efforts to transform poultry production, including increasing the productivity of local chicken from an average of 45–60 eggs per hen per year to between 120 and 180 eggs.
Muli disclosed that there are more than 240 incubators currently operational across the County, producing between 100 and 1,056 chicks per cycle, while 476 village-level vaccination service providers have been trained and equipped to strengthen disease control.
Through the collaboration, the County aims to stimulate further growth in the poultry value chain, improve linkages in input supply and markets, and enhance incomes and livelihoods for farming households across Makueni.
Others who graced the occasion included Agriculture Chief Officer (CO), Japheth Kiminza, and the area Member of County Assembly (MCA), Elizabeth Mutinda, among other government officials and wananchi.
By Patrick Nyakundi
