New beginning as Standard Group unveils groundbreaking partnership

Agriculture is the single most important avenue for getting people out of poverty and for nations to start prospering, a UN official has said.

United Nations Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative Siddharth Chatterjee said Kenya has all the right ingredients to tap into this potential in agriculture, thanks to an enabling environment.

“Kenya has what I call the 3Ps – Political will, Policies and Partnerships,” said Chatterjee.

But despite this right mix, sadly, agriculture remains largely untapped. The demographics equally present a unique scenario that can be harnessed.

UN statistics show the average age of a farmer is 61 years, while demographics show that the average age of a Kenyan youth is 18 years. Kenya has the highest population of young jobless youth.

“Each year, we have 10-12 million youth getting into the job market, yet only one million jobs are created. Agriculture can absorb this labour force,” Chatterjee said.

He says Kenya is on the cusp of a demographic dividend that can offer transformation. However, despite this opportunity, youth shy away from agriculture.

This is the reality upon which the Standard Group PLC unveiled a multimedia platform that seeks to convey impactful agricultural information and knowledge transfer, disseminate market information, showcase innovativeness and change perceptions about agriculture.

Through the project dubbed FarmKenya Initiative, the Standard Group seeks to use its diverse and established media to relay credible, relevant and timely agricultural information to the public.

Speaking at the unveiling function at a Nairobi hotel on Thursday, at an event attended by key stakeholders in private and public sector, Standard Group Chief Executive Officer Orlando Lyomu said the Group was making a new value proposition for stakeholders in agriculture sector in Kenya and beyond.

Terming it a new beginning, Mr Lyomu said the initiative seeks to take agriculture to the next level.

“We want to redefine our role, influence those beyond our borders and take a bold step beyond the usual politics,” he said.

Through this bold step, the CEO stated, the Group will henceforth focus on a new communication framework for positive outcomes.

Citing the fact that youth shy away from agriculture because it is deemed as dirty and unrewarding, he said: “We want to make agriculture fun and impactful… We have mediums to control perceptions, but what do we do with these mediums? As Standard Group, we do not just want to run with what we have, but go a step further and give a wider variety of choice to our stakeholders to disseminate critical agricultural info.”

To achieve this goal, the Group launched the Farmers KTN TV, Wakulima Radio and a vibrant agricultural website that will seek to relay agricultural information.

In addition, the Group will use its already established media like the Smart Harvest & Technology pullout and the Standard Digital to meet stakeholders’ needs. German’s ambassador to Kenya Annett Gunther lauded the initiative, saying it was timely. “This is inspiring. With this initiative, we have everything. Data, technology, youth, research, you name it... It will be great to see how all these key ingredients combine to make agriculture in Kenya greater,” she said.

Speaking during a panel discussion on KTN, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) Deputy Vice Chancellor Research and Extension Prof Mary Abukutsa-Onyango said it was time for action to make agriculture great again.