Expanding Knowledge and Engagement in Agriculture: Key Meetings, Field Visits, and Documentary Work

Within the past two weeks, I took part in several activities, including a meeting with the Nairobi City County’s Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Sub-sector at Waithaka Vocational School. Since Mazingira has partnered with Waithaka to open a Demonstration Farm at the school, they worked with both parties to discuss any existing issues and formulate a work plan. During this visit, I learned more about the association between Mazingira, the Nairobi City County (NCC) and Waithaka through the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). Since we work closely with the NCC, it was beneficial for me to meet the officials and gain exposure to the policy aspects of our work. 

Additionally, I worked with the documentary crew to film the final interviews with the Mazingira staff at the office. By listening to everyone, I gained more context about our work and learned how to better articulate some topics. These interviews provided the background and context for the documentary about the Gender, Urban Agriculture and Food System Training, and will enhance the case study by showing the importance of gender equality in agriculture. 

Furthermore, I joined the rest of the Mazingira Team on a field visit with Adriana Romas, a Senior International Development Officer at Global Affairs Canada. We visited some farmers who had previously trained with Mazingira, as well as Waithaka’s demonstration farm. These visits allowed me to understand the training’s impact on people and was beneficial to the project as proof of its continuous success. I captured many photos of the visit, which will be used for communications purposes in the future.  

I met with some previous participants of the project, including John Gichimu Banjeri, who united with his peers to form the Dagoretti Greeners Community. They are a community-based organization (CBO) focusing on environmental conservation and waste management. After registering as an official organization, the group came together to start their own garden and educate their community about agriculture. I also met with Lucy Njeri Muthiora, who trained with Mazingira in 2023. While she initially produced vegetables and poultry, she learned that she was not generating significant income through this. Lucy then decided to open her own shop, selling her poultry piece-by-piece instead of whole, and working with other farmers to supply her goods. Training with Mazingira served as a catalyst for Lucy, since it allowed her to start farming vegetables in addition to poultry. Through this, she was able to immerse herself in farming, build connections and use her knowledge of agriculture to start a successful business. Lucy attended the most recent GUAFS Training to teach the new trainees about poultry farming.  

As I approach the mid-point of my term, I am becoming more comfortable with everything. I have learned more about agriculture and food systems in the past 2.5 months than ever before, and I hope to continue learning.