The Much-Awaited FINAS Conference Kicks Off In Nairobi

The much-awaited Financing Agriculture Sustainably Conference (FINAS 2024) kicked off this Wednesday at the Nairobi Safari Park Hotel, bringing together government officials and major stakeholders within and without the agricultural sector.

Organized by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rootooba, the conference looks at curbing the looming severe food insecurity in Kenya and help reducing inflation on foodstuff.

The organizations taking part are seeking to rally sector players including financial institutions, Agribusiness stakeholders, and the government to re-look funding options and investment in the Agricultural sector and position Kenya for resilient Agricultural Enterprises.

The conference was set in motion by the Prime Cabinet Secretary, who is also the Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Musalia Mudavadi, together with his Agricultural counterpart, Mithika Linturi.

“There is no doubt that agriculture plays a significant role in enhancing our economy. As the Ministry, we have put together mechanisms, including subsidies that will make sure that the country gains the full potential from the agricultural sector,” said Mithika Linturi.

He called on all players within the sector to rally together and ensure that there is value addition down the value chain to better the sector and empower both large and small-scale farmers across the country.

On his part, Musalia Mudavadi said that the agricultural sector will only flourish if there is a clear partnership between the private sector and the government.

“The agricultural sector has a lot of potential but as a country, we need to go back to the drawing board, relook the whole sector, and seek healthy partnerships to bring out the best within the sector. As a country, we can feed ourselves. We just need the best strategies in place and we set out,” he said.

The conference Partners are GIZ, FSD-Kenya,  African Fertilizer and Agribusiness Partnership (AFAP), FSD-K, AGRA, National Research Fund (NRF), International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), Tegemeo Institute, Association of Fintechs in Kenya (AFIK), AGRA, Association of Microfinance Institutions of Kenya (AMFI), Fertilizer Association of Kenya (FAK), Apollo Agriculture, Kenya Union of Savings and Credit Co-operatives (KUSCO), SNBX Capital.

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