From Seeds to Opportunities: Exploring New Paths for Community Empowerment in Kilifi
At Rare Vrienden, empowerment is at the heart of what we do.
Our work in Kilifi is not about supporting one particular sector. It is about helping people and communities gain the knowledge, skills, opportunities and connections they need to build more secure and sustainable futures.
Agriculture is one of the ways in which that can happen.
On Monday, 28 September, Rare Vrienden brought together agricultural practitioners and partners at Silver Palm, Kilifi, to explore practical opportunities around resilient crops, improved seeds, training and access to markets.
Among those present were Quinter Aoko of AgriNutriForest, based in Malindi, and Miriam Pendo of East-West Seed, based in Kilifi, alongside the Rare Vrienden team and Prof. Dr. Reimund P. Rötter, who joined as a friend of Rare Vrienden, an agriculture enthusiast and sponsor of a high-school student in our programme.
Empowerment through practical opportunity
For communities where livelihoods are closely connected to agriculture, empowerment can mean having better choices.
It can mean knowing which crops are suited to local conditions, having access to better planting material, learning practical ways to manage pests, understanding where markets exist, and being able to make more informed decisions about what to produce.
That was the perspective behind the discussion.
The conversation explored underutilised vegetables and fruits, including drought-resistant species that could have potential both for household consumption and income generation. There was also discussion around locally appropriate approaches to pest management and the role of training in helping farmers make better use of available resources.
The emphasis was not simply on introducing new crops. It was on connecting knowledge, production and opportunity.
Seeds, skills and markets
The discussion also considered improved seed varieties, including crops available through agricultural suppliers under the Royal Seeds range.
But access to seeds alone is not enough.
For market-oriented production to become a meaningful opportunity, farmers need the right combination of quality seed, practical training and access to markets. Elements of contract farming were also discussed as one possible way of strengthening that connection.
This is where Rare Vrienden's broader approach to empowerment becomes important.
Whether the focus is education, skills development, women's economic opportunities or agriculture, the underlying question is the same:
Can people gain the tools and opportunities to create greater stability for themselves and their families?
Why okra?
One crop that emerged from the discussion was okra, a priority crop for East-West Seed with promising potential for further exploration in Kilifi.
A practical idea was proposed: Rare Vrienden could dedicate part of the experimental field at its office to an okra demonstration plot.
This would allow the team to observe the crop under local conditions while building practical knowledge and strengthening a possible connection with East-West Seed through Miriam Pendo.
There was also discussion about introducing okra at the Sosoni farm during the dry season, providing another opportunity to observe how it performs under local conditions.
For now, this is exactly what it should be: an opportunity to test, learn and build from evidence rather than make assumptions about what will work.
Learning from how crops handle multiple stresses
Prof. Dr. Reimund P. Rötter also brought another perspective into the conversation.
His academic work includes research into how crops respond when several stresses occur at the same time—for example drought, nutrient limitations, pests and disease.
His work through the MultiStress research programme examines these interactions through field-based research, including work in Kenya.
The subject arose naturally during the meeting and was not presented as a formal Rare Vrienden research partnership.
Nevertheless, the discussion was particularly relevant to the realities facing farmers in places such as Kilifi.
Environmental challenges rarely occur in isolation. A farmer may be dealing with limited rainfall while also facing soil constraints, pests or disease.
Understanding these combined pressures can contribute to better-informed approaches to agricultural resilience.
Turning knowledge into opportunity
The meeting was ultimately about more than crops.
It was about connections—between people with different areas of expertise, between knowledge and practical application, and between production and potential markets.
That is the kind of opportunity Rare Vrienden seeks to create.
Agriculture is one part of a much broader picture of community empowerment. Through education, support for girls and women, skills development, livelihoods and community initiatives, our aim is to help people develop greater capacity and greater choice over their futures.
Sometimes that starts in a classroom.
Sometimes it starts with a new skill.
And sometimes, quite literally, it starts with a seed.
The important thing is what that opportunity can become when people have the knowledge, support and connections to build on it.
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