Co-op Foundation Transforming Lives of Small-Scale Farmers in Kenya

Agriculture plays a critical role in Kenya’s economy. The sector provides employment to more than 40 percent of the total population with more than 70 percent being in Kenya’s rural areas.

Although agriculture is a major contributor to the country’s Gross Domestic Product, the level of productivity has been on the decline.

Kenya is generally an agricultural economy. 86 percent of Kenyan farmers are small-scale who plant crops for both consumption and commercial purposes. Most of the time, these small-scale farmers face challenges of inadequate funding as well as harsh weather conditions like what is just being witnessed.

It is public knowledge that the Co-operative Bank of Kenya (Co-op Bank) has a unique market position given that co-operatives in Kenya are its major stakeholders and, therefore, the Bank is well positioned to contribute towards growing levels of agricultural productivity and food security.

Co-op Bank’s support to small-scale farmers through co-operatives and organized groups has for a long period of time made communities across Kenya be economically stronger with increased incomes and improved livelihoods. Co-operative Bank believes that when their customers are economically empowered, they will be able to make it thrive too.

Among the five main pillars under the Co-op Foundation, Agriculture takes lead. Through this pillar, the bank aims at providing support to enhance smallholder farmers’ productivity by strengthening producer organizations to improve business management skills, marketing, financial, administrative and organizational performance, improving access to financial services, credit and insurance and also through promoting agribusiness.

Co-op Foundation is a registered trust that was established in 2007 in recognition of the need to enhance the existing Corporate Social Investments by Co-operative Bank of Kenya.

The Foundation’s mission is to invest in local communities through responsible corporate citizenship for improved quality of life, and this is exactly what is being seen from all initiatives under the Bank.