The 1st Kenya Food Systems Conference, held in Nairobi in early April and organised by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development (MoALD) and the CGIAR Initiative on National Policies and Strategies (NPS), had two key aims: to come up with a set of recommendations to guide food system transformation policies over the coming years and work out how to enhance the dialogue between scientists and policymakers.
Kenya is a land of massive opportunities, possessing abundant natural resources and great potential for scaling up agricultural production and the transformation of its food system. It has a young, well-educated population – 35% of its 53 million inhabitants are below the age of 35 – and it is an important hub for agrifood tech start-ups. It also has a wealth of national and international research institutions which will play a key role in the country’s future agricultural transformation.
But Kenya also faces many challenges. Recent droughts have had a devastating impact on pastoral systems, with millions of livestock dying of starvation. Gains in crop productivity over the last decade have begun to stall or decline. The rising cost of fuel and fertiliser has made foodstuffs increasingly expensive. Many Kenyans cannot afford a healthy diet – 36% live below the national poverty line – and a quarter of children are stunted by malnutrition.
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