Improving livelihoods
The Business Alliance Against Chronic Hunger (BAACH) aims to improve the living standards of Kenya's peasant farmers, many of whom have been stuck in a sub-subsistence lifestyle and are often ravaged by drought and famine whenever rainfall is inadequate.
The Siaya District in the west of Kenya is the focal point for the group's first project, with multinational and local companies pooling resources to solve poverty-related problems. The group is implementing "quick win" and business-development strategies to increase food production, nutrition and incomes in communities affected by chronic hunger.
The district was chosen because of its high levels of poverty, along with its potential to increase food production through a business-driven model, in turn improving the incomes of the local communities involved.
Innovative solutions to hunger
"What is new in this approach is the effort to harness the knowledge, competencies and capabilities of the private sector with others to generate innovative solutions to hunger," says Unilever Kenya Managing Director David Mureithi. "It is important to emphasize that the Siaya project is a pilot and success will be measured as much by the results there as by the ability to successfully replicate the same or similar models in other parts of Kenya. This will be only be possible if the model is market based."
This approach is based on the premise that business can best support rural development by transferring basic know-how and capability to residents and, where relevant, by providing markets for outputs. This will complement the work of other partners including government, NGOs and microfinance institutions, focusing on areas such as health services, infrastructure, education and credit provision.
“Companies including Unilever will buy local farmers' products and also help them find new markets and add value to their produce. Unilever Kenya currently buys many of the raw materials for the manufacture of our Royco Mchuzi seasoning mix and stock cubes from small-scale farmers in the region's Rift Valley. A similar programme will be replicated in Siaya to find market opportunities for locally grown crops."
Improving crop production & developing business skills
The Alliance's action plan calls for improving production of staple and high-value crops and strengthening entrepreneurship skills to encourage business. Steps towards this include:
- A pilot voucher programme for agricultural inputs, which will provide access to seeds and fertilizer for 11,000 farmers
- Business linkages for companies to source specific high-value products, such as vegetables, honey and spices from the district
- A guaranteed purchase agreement for staple crops
- Feasibility assessments for commercial-scale processing facilities
- Training women farmers in processing, packaging and marketing soy products
- Training in entrepreneurial skills for local youth
Breaking the poverty cycle
"There are hundreds of millions of people across Africa who are trapped in a cycle of poverty," adds Herbert Smorenburg, director, Nutrition & Health, Unilever Africa, Middle East and Turkey.
"The aim of this initiative is to break that cycle at every stage by supporting farmers not just in growing their crops, but also in providing a market to which farmers can sell them, generating a sustainable source of income."
And there's a strategic business reason for supporting the farmers too, as Herbert explains: "In the long term, by helping these communities raise money we're converting non-consumers into consumers," he says.
"When these farmers begin to earn enough money, some of the first things they will buy will be basic household goods - soaps, detergents and foods - generating more sales for Unilever."
Other companies involved in the Alliance, facilitated by the Switzerland-based World Economic Forum, include Coca Cola, Monsanto and Tetra Leval.
