By Bob Aston
Chase Bank and Amiran Kenya are set to partner with Laikipia Produce and Marketing Co-operative Society to undertake various development programs. During a meeting on January 15, 2014 held at Ng’arua Maarifa Centre in Sipili Division, Laikipia County, representatives of the three organizations agreed to work together to undertake various projects.
Laikipia Produce and Marketing
Co-operative officials together with Arid Lands Information Network (ALIN)
staff at Ng’arua Maarifa Centre informed Chase Bank and Amiran officials on the
milestones and challenges that the co-operative is currently facing.
“The Co-operative can be a seed
stockiest and they will also be agents of Chase bank and other customers can
bank through them,” added Isaac.
Chase Bank and Amiran Kenya are set to partner with Laikipia Produce and Marketing Co-operative Society to undertake various development programs. During a meeting on January 15, 2014 held at Ng’arua Maarifa Centre in Sipili Division, Laikipia County, representatives of the three organizations agreed to work together to undertake various projects.
Chase Bank,Amiran,Kenya,Cooperative and Ngarua Maarifa officials |
ALIN is currently offering advisory
support services, capacity building, information access and empowerment to the
members of the Co-operative.
Laikipia Produce and Marketing
Co-operative Society vice Chairman, Samuel Mbogo said that some of the
challenges the co-operative face is lack of finances to buy seeds and
fertilizer for members.
Samuel Kanyingi from Chase Bank
advised the co-operative to work and organize with the bank as it has a lot of
money to dispense on agriculture.
“Organize yourselves and benefit from the bank
as money is available. We have not yet exhausted funds that were set aside last
year to help farmers while this year funds have again been set aside for
farmers,” said Kanyingi.
Laikipia Produce and Marketing
Co-operative Society is spearheading
market access initiatives using modern technologies, supporting
community needs assessments and information dissemination, organizing
trainings, networking and capacity building for farmers, mobilizing the farming
communities into common interest producer groups, enabling farmers to access
inputs and bulk their produce for easier marketing, promoting quality control
and post harvest handling as well as supporting farmers and local communities
to access information on farming.
“The best way to benefit from banks
is through organized groups. One can get cheaper loans and good packages,” said
Isaac Ruto, from Chase Bank.
Photo session |
Chase Bank and Amiran Kenya are
currently in a partnership to extend new credit opportunities to farmers and
youth, that will enable them to purchase Amiran’s modern agricultural technologies,
to boost their farm produce as well as empower the youth economically.
Under the programme, Chase Bank and
its subsidiary, Rafiki DTM have allocated the agribusiness finance project 3.5
billion to help finance Amiran’s modern agricultural technologies to interested
youths and farmers.
Amiran Regional Manager-West Rift, Andrew
Nguyo, informed the Co-operative that it is easy to get dealership as one can
get their products directly at a reduced price with no middleman in between.
Nguyo emphasized on the need for proper working relationship between the
cooperative and the organization.
“A relationship must first be
established to grow and improve the Cooperative,” said Nguyo
Amiran Kenya’s agricultural basket of
products are said to include chemicals, fertilizers and seeds; large and small
scale agro-projects using state of the art technology like modern irrigation
systems, green house climate control and water measuring technologies.
“As a co-operative you can get
products directly from Amiran. This means that you will be able to get our
products cheaply compared to individual farmers,” said Nguyo.
Amiran and Chase Bank officials also
visited the Co-operative store and office to assess what they have been doing.
The Co-operative which was formed last year already has more than 200
registered members.
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