Agricultural Sector Development Strategy Medium-Term Investment Plan: 2010–2015

The medium-term investment plan (MTIP) for Kenya's agricultural sector springs directly from the country's agricultural sector development strategy (ASDS), whose development process fulfilled specific requirements for developing the Kenya Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) Compact. The framework for the MTIP is fully aligned with the ASDS and CAADP. It reflects the Government's comprehensive sector-wide approach to agricultural development and food security enhancement. It captures the diversity of agroecological conditions facing sector participants. Its proposed investment areas emerge from the strategic thrusts prioritized in the ASDS and CAADP Compact.
The overall development and growth of the sector will, therefore, be anchored in the following five strategic objectives: (i) increasing productivity and promoting commercialization and competitiveness of all crops, livestock, marine and fisheries, and forestry, (ii) promoting private sector and participation in all aspects of agricultural development, (iii) developing and managing the national water resources, land resources, forestry, and wildlife in a sustainable manner, (iv) reforming agricultural service, credit, regulatory, processing and manufacturing institutions for efficiency and effectiveness and (v) increasing market access and trade through the development of cooperatives and agri-business. These five ASDS strategic thrusts define five of the MTIP's six investment areas. The sixth investment area relates to ensuring effective coordination and implementation of the MTIP portfolio, a key priority given Kenya's sector-wide approach to agricultural development and food security enhancement.
The six MTIP investment pillars are therefore as follows: (i) increasing productivity, commercialization and competitiveness, (ii) promoting private sector participation; (iii) promoting sustainable land and natural resources management, (iv) reforming the delivery of agricultural services, (v) increasing market access and trade and (vi) ensuring effective coordination and implementation.
In order to make agriculture, forestry and fisheries more productive and sustainable, the strategy plans to promote market-led sustainable productivity growth in priority crop, livestock, marine, fishery and forestry sub-sectors. Activities in this investment area will be: (i) promoting technical and institutional innovations in farm input supply, (ii) promoting more intensified use of farm inputs, (iii) accelerating development and improved management of inland fisheries resources, (iv) developing and multiplying seeds for drought tolerant crop, (v) promoting conservation agriculture, (vi) promoting agroforestry.
Regarding the reduction of rural poverty: the plan envisages diversifying livelihoods and expanding income generating opportunities for vulnerable and food insecure populations.
In order to enable inclusive and efficient agricultural and food system aims to expand access to key agricultural markets for farmers and food insecure vulnerable groups, leading to expanded domestic, regional and international agricultural trade. For this purpose, the plan proposes the following activities: (i) constructing/rehabilitating rural and urban marketplaces and rehabilitating rural access roads (ii) strengthening marketing grades and standards, (iii) leveraging public food procurement for pro-smallholder market development, (iv) developing and promoting low-cost post-harvest technologies.
To increase the resilience of livelihoods to disasters, the Medium-Term Investment Plan envisages the following activities: (i) increasing awareness of climate change impacts and promoting viable adaptation strategies, (ii) strengthening drought risk management and early warning systems, (iii) expanding vaccination and animal disease prevention and control, (iv) developing disease-free zones.
In the context of governance, the MTIP will be implemented through the ASDS institutional framework, operationalized through the Agricultural Sector Coordination Unit (ASCU). With the responsibilities of the agricultural sector currently spread over 10 ministries and the need for joint programming across these ministries and stakeholder groups, the implementation of MTIP will require strong partnerships between the Government, the private sector, development partners and other non-state actors. Strong coordination mechanisms will be fundamental to success. Six Thematic Working Groups (TWGs) have been established under ASCU precisely for that purpose, analyzing, prioritizing, and addressing constraints and opportunities in the agricultural sector. Chaired by a private sector representative and convened by Directors from sector Ministries, these TWGs promote broad-based understanding and ownership of sector strategies and plans. Each stakeholder recognizes that it needs the other to achieve its individual aims. MTIP coordination and implementation will be grounded in these TWGs. The Government of Kenya has established a National Integrated Monitoring and Evaluation System (NIMES) whose objective is to measure the efficiency of Government programmes and the effectiveness of its policies. Activities implemented under the MTIP will be linked to the NIMES through a sector-wide M&E system currently being developed by ASCU. The system will be established in a graduated manner, based on pilots, testing and demonstrating success. Capacity development of the organisations and people on whom the long-term success of the system will depend on will be integrated.