Kenya – Kenya Cooperative Development Program (CDP)

The Kenya Cooperative Development Program (CDP) works with select farm cooperative members to improve the productivity and competitiveness of key agricultural sectors to improve farmers’ incomes and ensure greater food security in the region.

Activities include farmer trainings and coaching on technical assistance and strategic management, and build on ACDI/VOCA’s prior cooperative experience in Kenya.

The five-year program also will establish Cooperative Learning Information Centers (CLICs) to ensure that Kenyan cooperatives continue to benefit from distance learning and sharing of best practice materials even after the project ends.

The Kenya CDP draws on the expertise of a range of international and local partners to implement comprehensive market-driven approaches to improve agricultural productivity. These include:

• Strategic collaboration with the Overseas Cooperative Development Council (OCDC)
• Support from the Kenyan Ministry of Cooperatives and Marketing, the Cooperative College of Kenya
• Alliance with Communications Cooperative International (CCI) to develop new distance learning systems
• Support from Agri and Cooperative Training and Consultancy Services Ltd. (ATC) for cooperative member activities, learning documentation, and monitoring and evaluation activities.

Cooperative Selection

In 2010, Kenya CDP team began selecting cooperatives to receive technical assistance. The chosen cooperatives represent varying levels of experience; some are registered cooperatives struggling to rebuild, while others are nascent pre-cooperatives establishing operations. With each type of group, CDP Kenya focuses on building good governance and leadership, as well as helping the groups improve revenue through training in production and marketing.

To date, Kenya CDP has:

• Hosted five volunteers to build the capacity of and provide technical assistance to the cooperatives
• Held discussions with cooperatives on gender and constraints to women’s participation in cooperatives, leading to the formation of a self-help group
• Provided technical assistance that led to improvements in recordkeeping, strategic planning, financial planning and quality control
• Provided trainings in leadership, group dynamics and Farming as a Family Business.

At the beginning of each project year, additional cooperatives will be reviewed to possibly be included in the program.

Monitoring and Evaluation

The selected cooperatives also undergo continual assessment, called the “M3,” which focuses on management, membership and money. Assessments include:

• Checklist questions for quantitative results in each category
• Qualitative responses to probing questions
• Guided cooperative self-evaluation to identify short- and long-term goals of the cooperative.

In 2012 ACDI/VOCA technical staff worked with ATC staff to develop the monitoring and evaluation platform as well as action plans for each cooperative using the baseline assessments. Promoters in each region will work with the cooperatives to monitor and evaluate progress against the action plans and M3 indicators.

Farmer Cooperative Backdrop

The international cooperative movement has proven an effective vehicle for linking large numbers of smallholder farmers to new market opportunities. Training through cooperatives has built local expertise on technical and financial services, market information, and legal and regulatory issues.

The Kenya CDP is part of the larger USAID CDP program, which also includes efforts in Ethiopia, Paraguary and Tanzania and expects to reach some 25,000 direct beneficiaries over its five years.

For more information, contact Emily Stiles at estiles@acdivoca.org.

Updated: 4/12

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