Informing humanitarians worldwide 24/7 — a service provided by UN OCHA

Kenya

Seed and fertilizer help displaced farmers in Kenya

CRS continues to respond to the post-election crisis in Kenya. Recently, CRS and the Catholic Diocese of Eldoret assisted 1,500 farmers displaced by the violence by providing them with vouchers redeemable for seed and fertilizer-critical aid to avoid food shortages. Johnson Irungu, CRS Kenya agricultural unit manager, spoke with Peter Mwaniki Muchiri from Yamumbi village to learn more about the gradual return to farming.

Which vouchers have you redeemed so far?

We redeemed vouchers for 50 kilograms [110 pounds] of fertilizer, 16 kilograms [35lbs] of bean seeds and 10 kilograms [22 pounds] of maize seeds.

How have you used these materials?

I planted maize and bean crops on 2½ acres of land. We will take good care of the crops so we can obtain a good harvest.

How many people are in your family?

We have seven dependants, including my daughter-in-law, whom I gave a piece of land to farm. I also shared some of the fertilizer with her.

Has CRS' assistance been useful to you?

We won't be able to tell until we harvest, but we are grateful for the assistance, which made it possible for us to get seeds to plant. The assistance was timely, because it came when we were having problems. Now we hope that we will get [additional] fertilizer for top dressing.

When do you think you'll return to live on your farm?

We cannot come back to live on this farm anytime soon, because we do not have a house here. It was burned down during the post-election violence.