Vihiga governor Dr. Wilber Ottichilo has hosted a delegation from the Sustainable Organic Farming Development Initiative (SOFDI), led by Founder, Brigitte Frey, and International Director, Autumn Totton, who paid him a courtesy call at his office.
The meeting focused on reviewing the progress of SOFDI’s ongoing programmes in Vihiga County and exploring new areas of collaboration to enhance their impact.
SOFDI, which has operated in the county for the past 25 years, has been instrumental in implementing the School Feeding Programme for Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE).
The initiative has improved school enrolment, attendance and learners’ performance across the county.
Currently, 55 ECDE centres are benefiting from the programme, reaching a total of 2,827 learners this year alone.
Dr. Ottichilo lauded SOFDI’s contribution, particularly its agro-ecology approach, describing it as a sustainable model for community development.
“I am quite impressed by the Agro-Ecology aspect of your programme as it is more sustainable and effective. As a county, we plan to deepen our collaboration with SOFDI by involving all departments, not just education. We also intend to link you with our Vocational Training Centres to help equip learners with self-employment skills upon completion of their courses,” he said.
The governor reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to supporting initiatives that promote education, nutrition, and environmental sustainability.
Also present during the meeting were County Executive Committee Member for Education Anne C. Desma, Chief Officer Dominic Luvavo, Director for ECDE Victor Serede, Sabatia ECDE Programmes Officer Musungu Mugoha and the SOFDI delegation.
by Rose Wasike
