kenya self help agriculture project

CESARD:

Center for Sustainable Agriculture

and

Rural Development

Bungoma

KENYA

Here is the latest information I have from Kenya sent by Fr James Mabele who is one of 8 members on the board of trustees. Vincent is on the left of the picture, Fr James on the right with one of the trustees.

"Some of the objectives of Cesard are:

Establish demonstration and teaching good Agricultural husbandry, live stock, bee keeping and fish rearing.

Establish and maintain Agricultural and other projects and Developments of every kind and to undertake marketing agent research.

Establish and maintain Agricultural and Rural Development

Establish and encourage people to have saving and credit facilities within membership.

CESARD is now an established trust registered and recognised by the Kenya Government

It has its office established with Vincent as its Director and with eight other members of the board of Trustees. The trustees are drawn from different parts of western Kenya who have different experience and expertise.

The Board of Trustees meet three times a year. The organization has so far leased some land of about 15 acres, where they have planted maize and beans two years running serving as an income generating project. CESARD too has mobilized members who have used facilities of saving and credit and have bought shares to the tune of 200,000 Kenya shillings and we shall soon open our doors for the members to take loans at low rates of interest. This is aimed at eradicating poverty.

We hope that once we have some funds to begin the Education program of the people about Agriculture to enable people to have enough food for their families which is our major objective, we shall do so by teaching people how to make their own manure without using fertilizers on their land.

We trust that the future of the organization is very promising because through saving and credit facilities we shall be able to run the office, we shall be able to pay two secretaries and the Director. We need some help from our friends overseas, in Germany, UK and USA.

However, the Aim is to self-sustainability, of the project and we have no doubt about its future."

They have a ongoing need for money to pay the office rent, we need to pay for the telephone and pay the secretary, we have no money to pay for these things and above all we need to pay the Director something to be able to maintain himself, to enable him to pay his rent for his house.

We have had a copy of the project plan which we have passed onto a friend who works for a large charitable organization to help hone the proposal so that the plan could form the basis of a grant. This may or may not be possible because the project is very small and may not be significant enough a project for the large charities to support.

Here are a few photos Vincent sent through recently so we can be in touch with progress.