Egerton University is partnering with stakeholders to promote 4K Clubs in 10 schools within Njoro Sub-County in an initiative that aims to empower young learners with knowledge and skills in responsible crop protection and sustainable farming practices.
The institution is actively involved in training 4K Club patrons, members and school heads on agricultural innovations and sustainable agronomical practices.
Speaking after staff from Egerton University visited Ndege Primary School and Njoro DEB Primary School, Dr Mary Waiganjo said it was inspiring that in some of the schools they were working with the 4K clubs that had introduced agroforestry and those whose vegetable plots were thriving.
“Egerton University is proud to continue working with schools in Njoro Sub- County to support 4K Clubs helping pupils learn practical farming skills and build a love for agriculture from a young age. The partnership aims to enhance agricultural productivity, ensure food safety, and improve health outcomes within the community,” noted Dr Waiganjo from the institution’s Faculty of Education and Community Development Studies.
The team was accompanied by West Virginia University (WVU) Associate Dean and Director of Extension Jennifer Ours Williams, retired WVU faculty member who is currently a consultant Sue Day-Perroots and Associate Vice President of Land Grant and Community Outreach at WVU Ann Bailey-Berry.
Dr Waiganjo pointed out that the program is also enhancing the capacity of 4K clubs in schools towards equipping learners with practical skills in combating climate change and sustainable agricultural practices.
At both schools, pupils showcased vegetable plots they manage as part of club activities. At Njoro DEB Comprehensive, the club has also integrated agroforestry by planting tree seedlings alongside vegetables.
Currently, 4K Club participation is limited to Grades 4–6. Egerton staff are working on a proposal to extend involvement up to age 35 to allow for continued participation and sustainability of the initiative.
Each of the ten schools is assigned a lecturer from Egerton as a mentor, supported by a teacher patron and student coaches from the Agricultural Education and Extension Student Association (AEESA). Egerton also conducts training for teachers and head teachers who serve as club patrons.
Dr Waiganjo noted that the clubs, once a cornerstone of agricultural and environmental education in schools, are a vital tool in fostering a generation that understands and actively participates in sustainable agricultural practices.
The 4K Club programme, an acronym for “Kuungana, Kufanya, Kusaidia Kenya” (Unite, Act, Help Kenya), was popular in the 1990s but has dwindled in recent years due to shifts in educational priorities and resource constraints.
With the growing threat of climate change, stakeholders believe it is time to shore them back into the education system.
According to Dr Waiganjo, climate change is no longer a distant issue but a reality affecting every aspect of our lives.
“We need to empower our children with the knowledge and skills to tackle these challenges from an early age. Enhancing capacity of 4K clubs can play a pivotal role in this effort,” she noted.
“This multi-stakeholder partnership aims to train and empower 4K Clubs—school-based agricultural groups—on the responsible use of crop protection innovations. The initiative is integrating sustainable practices into the activities of these clubs, fostering behaviour change within schools and the wider community to embrace responsible farming practices,” the don elaborated.
The program focuses on equipping young learners and their mentors with essential knowledge and skills to promote better farming methods.
The long-term goal is to enhance agricultural productivity, ensure food safety, and improve health outcomes within the community.
By enhancing the capacity of 4K clubs, students can learn to plant trees, manage waste, conserve water, and adopt sustainable agricultural practices, skills critical in mitigating the effects of climate change.
The clubs traditionally focused on teaching students practical farming techniques, environmental conservation, and community service.
Under the initiative 4K club members are now learning the importance of efficient water use, agroforestry, and soil conservation, skills critical in water-scarce counties.
Dr Waiganjo said aligning the clubs’ activities with the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC), will highlight experiential learning and problem-solving.
“The CBC is about equipping learners with hands-on skills, and 4K clubs perfectly align with this vision, through these clubs, students can develop solutions to real-world challenges like deforestation, soil erosion, and food insecurity,” she said.
The don indicated that as Kenya continues to face climate-related challenges such as droughts and floods, the capacity building of 4K Clubs could prove to be a game-changer.
By instilling environmental consciousness and practical skills in young learners, she added the country takes a step closer to a sustainable future.
In the recent past agricultural experts have indicated that 4K clubs were a crucial platform to nurture food security conscious citizens.
Given the new understanding of food security as an interconnection of different determinants, revitalizing the clubs to enhance food, agriculture and nutrition knowledge is noble.
During the visit various agricultural experts noted that Kenya, like the rest of the world, is currently looking for innovative ways to deal with the climate change crisis, considered to be the existential threat to survival of planet earth.
They were concurring that by building the capacities of children to learn about agricultural production, and by giving the children a platform to contribute to interventions that mitigate climate change, you give them a chance to start contributing to their future.
By design, individual governors are the patrons of 4-K Clubs in their respective counties. The 4-K clubs enabled learners to acquire basic introduction to farming concepts at primary school level.
Using school gardens, pupils were taught how to tend to crops and rear animals. These Clubs, however, waned in the late 1990s.
By Anne Mwale
