Nienke Jorna
As part of the minor International Entrepreneurship and Development, we were here to do a project on greenhouse farming technology. The challenge of the minor was to find technical solutions to problems within a different cultural and social context. With our obtained knowledge on sustainable entrepreneurship, development issues and cultural differences, we developed project plans and strategies and formulated our mission, vision and goals. These were derived by an extensive background research on the situation in Kenya and in particular, Siaya County. Many people in Kenya, as well as in other African countries, depend on agriculture as their main source of income. This sector is the second largest sector by means of contribution to the gross domestic product (GDP). However, many problems arise, such as lack of water sources, the small farm size, lack of knowledge on good farming techniques, the unavailability of farming machines and the depletion of soil nutrients (Sachs, 2005). These are serious problems, as they hinder economic growth of a family and a community. According to Jeffrey Sachs, the growth of household income is achieved by four factors:
• Save
The ability to save, to be able to invest in better techniques, instruments and livestock, which leads to capital accumulation, which again leads to an increase of the household productivity.
• Trade
By increasing the production, or by specializing in high-value crops, farmers are able to trade their products on the market and invest this money in other things than meals.
• Technology
By using new technologies, the efficiency and productivity can be increased.
• Resource boom
As a result of an expansion of the area where land can be cultivated, there is a boom of resources, which increases the household income exponentially.
Like many areas in Kenya, the Siaya County also suffers from the above-mentioned problems. Although the area near Lake Victoria is more humid than the inland, the Bondo region has suffered from large periods of drought and a low production on average. Furthermore, jobs in the agriculture sector are not favoured. In accordance with the Luo tradition, most people are still fishermen, dependent on the availability of fish in Lake Victoria. Life is not easy for them, especially since the introduction of the Nile perch in the early 1960s. While the perch was consumed locally and sold for export (they can reach a weight of 250 kg), traditional fishing has been hit hard by the arrival of modern vessels and factories. It is time for them to adapt to the new situation and look for other types of employment. Farming can be one of them. To pave the way to the eradication of poverty in Siaya County, it is crucial to change their attitude toward farming. We need to convince these fishermen and other people of Siaya County that farming can be a profitable business. We think that with greenhouse farming technology, this change of attitude can be accomplished.