Timothy Njagi

Tegemeo Institute of Agricultural Policy and Development

During the past decade, investments in large-scale irrigation development in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) have re-emerged. Given past experiences, this revival is not without controversy. This chapter examines whether large-scale irrigation construction in SSA is economically viable by estimating how much it would cost if the Mwea Irrigation Scheme in...

Countries in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) rely heavily on imported rice from Asia that is of superior quality compared to local rice. The objective of this study is to assess the impacts of the adoption of improved milling technologies and the associated structural transformation of the rice value chain from 2011 to 2019 using the original census of th...

Governments in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) have made concerted efforts to improve farmers’ adoption of modern technologies in their farm operations to realize a rice Green Revolution, improve food security, and alleviate poverty. However, smallholder farmers’ access to farm mechanization in SSA remains constrained due to supply-side and demand-side ch...

This paper studies whether the absence of locally adapted seed varieties constrains the productivity and incomes of farm households residing in small, agro-ecological niches. We empirically examine the disruption of the maize seed market in Western Kenya that took place when public sector foundation breeding and social impact investment capital cam...

Rural poverty poses a significant developmental challenge in Kenya. Using a panel survey in rural Kenya and qualitative material from focus groups and life history interviews from the regions of Makueni and Vihiga, we investigate the changing role of how agriculture and farming practices have contributed to sustained escapes from poverty since 2000...

Countries in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) rely heavily on imported rice from Asia that is of superior quality relative to local rice. The objectives of this study are to assess the impacts of the adoption of improved milling technologies and the associated structural transformation of the rice value chain from 2011 to 2019 using the original census of...

The environmental effects of climate change have significantly decreased agricultural productivity. Agroforestry technologies have been applied as a solution to promote sustainable agricultural systems. This study evaluates the factors influencing the adoption of agroforestry technology in Kenya. A multistage sampling technique was employed to coll...

During the past decade, investments in large-scale irrigation development in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) have come back. Given past experiences, this revival is controversial. This paper examines whether large-scale irrigation construction in SSA is economically viable by estimating how much it would cost if the Mwea Irrigation Scheme in Kenya, one of...

During the past decade, investments in large-scale irrigation development in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) have come back. Given past experiences, this revival is controversial. This paper examines whether large-scale irrigation construction in SSA is economically viable by estimating how much it would cost if the Mwea Irrigation Scheme in Kenya, one of...

Climatic variability and change continue to militate against efforts to increase agricultural productivity and food and nutrition security in many developing countries. Several studies propose crop diversification as a climate risk management strategy to increase production and food security. Most of the empirical studies are based on cross-section...

Irrigation projects in sub-Saharan Africa are mostly unsustainable because of lack of maintenance by their users or government planners. By contrast, evidence shows that the smallholder farmers are developing and expanding the irrigated land, using their initiatives. Farmer-led irrigation, a revolutionary agricultural intensification approach, is a...

The main reason for the success of the 20th century Green Revolution in Asia was the development of large-scale irrigation projects. But, since the late 1990s, these investments were out of the development agenda, partly because the success of the Green Revolution reduced the need for such irrigation development and partly because the lower-than-ex...

Horticultural production for the export market has been credited for rural community growth and employment in Sub-Saharan Africa. To make the agri-enterprises competitive and profitable, smallholder farmers are now required to invest in food safety and production standards such as GLOBAL Good Agricultural Practices (GLOBAL GAP). Most often, the ina...

Studies of improved seed adoption in developing countries are almost always based on household surveys and are premised on the assumption that farmers can accurately self‐report their use of improved seed varieties. However, recent studies suggest that farmers’ reports of seed varieties planted, or even whether the seed is local or improved, are so...

Pastoral communities are facing mounting pressure on their livelihoods due to misconceptions about pastoralism and global trends including population growth and climate change. In this context, this article seeks to establish a correlation between pastoral land tenure systems and the sustainability of pastoralism as a production system. Using a com...

Studies of improved seed adoption in developing countries almost always draw from household surveys and are premised on the assumption that farmers are able to self-report their use of improved seed varieties. However, recent studies suggest that farmers' reports of the seed varieties planted, or even whether seed is local or improved, are sometime...

Kenya's sugar industry is important to the economy as a source of livelihood for actors along the value chain as well as sugar for consumption and as a raw material for industries. Despite this, the industry continues to face many challenges including high input and sugar processing costs. This brief discusses the competitiveness of local sugar ind...

Credit constraint among smallholder farmers still remains one of the impediments to the much-needed increase in agricultural productivity in sub-Saharan Africa. Without these constraints, farmers would be able to access the required amount of inputs, when needed, and this would in turn translate to higher yields. Farmers may be credit constrained b...

Executive Summary This study examines determinants, trends and dynamics of rural poverty in Kenya using data collected in 2013 and 2015 from USAID’s Feed the Future (FTF) program zones of influence, Two methods are pursued in this study. The first uses the conventional poverty line based on expenditure approach, while the other uses the Multidimens...

Debate on food security in Kenya usually revolves around the strategies to ensure that the country produces enough for her citizens. Thus it is important to put a special focus on the food crops and products that are more important for food security to meet the consumption needs of all citizens. In addition, tracking changes in eating habits is imp...