‘WeFarm’ SMS based farming model launched in Nakuru

By KBC Reporter

Farmers in Nakuru County could see their production capacity increase significantly if recent efforts to have them access basic and current farming information is anything to go by.

This follows the launch of a toll free peer interaction SMS based service dubbed WeFarm in the county that enables users without internet connection to access a data base of relevant and timely farming advice as well as information on sustainable farming practices.

Agriculture is the backbone of most economies in Africa contributing averagely between 20 to 30 percent to the continent’s gross domestic product.

However, it is now emerging that empowering farmers through relevant and timely farming information could significantly boost their yields as witnessed by some farmers in Kakamega and Meru counties.

According to the Program coordinator Mwinyi Bwika, the platform is geared towards providing farmers an opportunity to interact, connect and tap from expertise of fellow small holder farmers across Kenya, Uganda and Peru.

Bwika says that over the last one year, its users have shared over 15 million pieces of information on the platform a move he says will help in curbing recurrent poor farming practices in remote areas in the country.

The program seeks to reach out to at least 1million farmers across the country by the end of the year.