INTEGRATED ENVIRONMENT CONSERVATION AND AGRICULTURE

The Namanjalala Green Network CBO, (Hereafter called NAGNET CBO), will work to solve the big problem of poverty and ecosystem degradation or environment degradation, which is caused by the negative human activities and poor agricultural systems. Nagnet CBO addresses the interlinked crises of climate change , deforestation, biodiversity loss, unsustainable food systems and value chains. Our solution most closely addresses the challenges of poverty, food insecurity, land degradation , deforestation and environment degradation, which pose a serious threat to community livelihood and agricultural production, hence exposing the community to hunger and famine each and every year. The challenges related to the problem are:-Poverty, extensive soil erosion, rapid deforestation, high population growth rate, flooding and hunger. Low income, unemployment and ecosystem degradation and lack of funds constitutes the bulk of constraints that affect the Namanjalala community. Land degradation, land use change, soil erosion, deforestation, flooding, increased poverty and food insecurity due to declining incomess, and employment, and declining soil fertility are the main challenges to environmental sustainability and socioeconomic development in Namanjalala. The local community experiences high poverty levels of 61%, of which has greatly contributed to deforestation (Kenya Bureau of statistics, 2021). The soils are poor, soil erosion is at 50% to the farmers farm lands. The community experiences floods during June and August, this leaves the farmers without crops for food security and this causes prolonged period of food insecurity and poor agricultural practices. One of the main causes of rural poverty is the under utilization of agricultural potential, poor agricultural practices, coupled with , poor soil practices, absence of soil management and conservation measures, vegetation degradation due to over harvesting . High population growth rate has resulted in increased demand for various products and services such as fuel wood, timber, grazing and settlement land and food security. Weak community participation in natural resources management, poor dissemination strategies and inadequate information on good practices for combating desertification. Soil degradation is a key environmental concern in Namanjalala with 44% of the soil experiencing some level of degradation. Land degradation continues to spread with great intensity in the community and is currently estimated to affect about 40% (30,000 people) of the community. 

The Namanjalala Green Network CBO solution is a large community driven project aimed at improving the quality of life of Namanjalala inhabitants which addresses the social and environmental issues, sustainable solutions which positively contribute to the provision of environmental education, training and capacity building of community farmer members. Our solution title is:- INTEGRATED ENVIRONMENT CONSERVATION AND AGRICULTURE. NAGNET CBO activities are will focus on the AGROFORESTRY program by engaging small scale holder farmers women, youth, children and farmers in agriculture and sustainable agricultural transformation by adopting forest-friendly agriculture through community forest based management working through , tree planting, through afforestation, and reforestation programmes. Methods used:- Sustainable Agricultural Land Management practices (SALM). Participatory Land Use Planning (PLUP). Our solution strategy is :- Through restoration, protection, conservation and rehabilitation interventions, and training of communities in agroforestry, nature-based solutions, using the participatory group approach strategy using farmers groups. it is through this movement local communities tackle their agricultural problems , they are self governing, voluntary and focus on problem solving resources within the community, this suggests that such approach provide a means to share technical information much more efficiently, spread the adoption of new technologies, enhance research and foster farm and water shed planning proccesses. NAGNET CBO project will support approximately 26 villages, with 525 households of 2525 direct beneficiaries. The project targets the most vulnerable including people with disabilities, women, youths children and farmers, and those living in extreme poverty in remote rural areas. Our project relies upon the technical expertise in the Ministry of agriculture, environment and partners such as Vi. Agroforestry NGO, ICIPE NGO. NAGNET CBO needs support in business model, product market fit, strategy and development. Human capital, board development, product distribution and expanding client base. NAMANJALALA GREEN NETWORK CBO was formed in 2004 and registered in 2005 to pursue social and environmental justice in Namanjalala through rehabilitation efforts that include community training, education, forest protection and advocacy for food security, and forest landscape reforestation and rehabilitation. The CBO WAS FOUNDED WITH THE AIM OF eradicating poverty, end hunger and conserve the environment through SALM AND PLUP methodologies. Our approaches are adaptation and mitigation , through activities like:- soil nutrient management, soil and water conservation, agronomic practices such as crop rotation, inter cropping and agroforestry for them to achieve increased environmental resilience in different agro ecological zones, and in order to preserve and reverse land degradation. Our specific activities are conservation agriculture, training, tree seedlings production and planting, economic empowerment, agroforestry, nature-based solutions, livelihood improvement and the agricultural production. This NAGNET CBO project will take 24 months to complete, and will cost 15,471, 152 millions. AIMS OF NAGNET CBO :- is to trduce tural poverty, increase food and nutritional security and enhance ecosystem resilience through improved agroforestry technologies. One of the main aims of NAGNET CBO project has been to break the circle of poverty and natural resource degradation by encouraging rural farmers to increase agricultural production.

The Namanjalala Green Network solution serves the small scale holder rural farmers living in remote and extreme poverty and environmental degradation areas owning land holding equivalent to 2 ha, the women, youth, children and farmers. This ptoject will benefit 525 households directly in the 19 villages mentioned above with a population of 2525 people of which 230 are women, 125 youths and 170 farmers. Scaling up nature-based solutions for inclusive economic growth, poverty reduction, sustainable livelihoods, conflict prevention, disaster risk reduction, improved health, accelerating regenerative productive practices including agriculture, agroforestry and implementing sustainable agricultural land use management for climate mitigation and adaptation using restoration, conservation and protection activities and monitoring land degradation, applying forest friendly agriculture and climate smart agriculture by pursuing agroforestry, better soil management through terracing, mulching, minimum tillage, no-till planting, crop rotation, pest management, weed control and other forest adjusted tillage. This project will result in to sustainable and environmental benefits including, increased farmers cash income earnings, improved food security, reduced poverty levels,availability of wood fuel, rainfall and improved soil fertility, increased biodiversity and reduced soil erosion , increased carbon sequestration and storage, reduced carbon emissions to the atmosphere and the community members become more resilient to climate change effects. The innovations will increase household incomes ensure food security and the resilience of natural resources. NAGNET CBO strives to attain the SDGs number 1, 2, 3, 5, 13, and 17.       

Having been in this field for 19 years, NAGNET CBO's members have been trained in agroforestry, nature- based solutions and sustainable agriculture, nature conservation and environment protection by our partners, the Vi. Agroforestry project NGO, MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE, Nalep progtamme, NAAIAP and other various trainings that have empowered us with the knowledge in agriculture and environment conservation. And the community has and know us the environment friendly organization from our previous activities of protecting the environment, restoring and conserving nature in our community of Namanjalala. And through trainings, workshops and seminars organized by NAGNET and partners in the community. We use technologies in implementing our activities and we are the only organization popularizing the agroforestry and the push-pull technology in Trans-Nzoia County and Namanjalala community.

We selected the above stage because we have been involved in agroforestry, environment conservation for the past 19 years. Since we are an Agroforestry project, we did establish 23 village community tree nurseries for the production of tree seedlings, Established 2 community agroforestry demonstration learning sites for backstopping the local community farmers in agroforestry issues. Bellow is the little we have done:-

a). Protected 2.5 kilometers of river Sabwani banks by planting indigenous tree specie, Bamboos and grss species and rehabilitated 3 acres of wild life habitat and created 37 water pans to tackle floods in Namanjalala community.

b). Participated campaign plan foe prevention and control of desertification at the Mount Elgon Ecosystem in collaboration with IUCN and the Trans- Nzoia government.

c). Supported the participation of 120 young youths people in climate change training and capacity building of 10 women's groups in environment protection and conservation.

d). Diversified livelihoods to include trditional vegetables production of saka, murere, suja and kunde andn cultivation of TC-bananas and creation of woodlots for women firewood in the community

e). Over 70,000 tree seedlings donated for free to be planted in public places and given to the wetlands for climate change mitigation.

f).  Trained 8,000 community farmers in agriculture, forest protection against fire and logging and wood lots establishment for firewood.

We are applying to solve because of the problems encountered in our community, because environment degradation is still a major problem affecting Namanjalala community and its people. Another problem is climate change with its devastating catastrophic alarming effects that is threatening human livelihoods, and all sectors on the planet, so we try to mitigate it through tree planting and afforestation activities and agroforestry systems. Nagnet CBO needs support in the following fields:- Business certification and modeling, product market, product distribution, branding, marketing strategy and web development. Finally we need some funds to implement the said problems of poverty eradication and environment conservation.

 Namanjalala Green Network CBO's solution is different because we we use technologies in solving the farmers problems, we apply the agroforestry and push-pull  technologies in training our farmers and target groups. Our project strategy is through restoration, protection, conservation and rehabilitation activities. Nagnet CBO, brings together diferent women's groups, youths, self help groups and farmers groups to work together along areas of common interests. In order to achieve our goals we train local community farmers in nature conservation using nature-based solutions and tree planting using agroforestry technology. We train farmers to change their farming practices, to diversified cropping to increase incomes to fight poverty and environment degradation and through diversification of markets, livelihoods and nature, and enhance self organization of women's groups, youths, and farmers groups and offer them training and to strengthen natural resources governance. This is required to ensure the delivery of ecosystem services such as climate control, soil stabilization and watershed protection which increases the resilience of local communities to adverse weather conditions resulting from climate change . Our approaches are adaptation and mitigation using the participatory group approach strategy which advocates for food sovereignty, agricultural reform, teaches farmers on soil fertility management, water utilization, soil erosion control, community based forest management and farm forestry, producing global benefits by helping to mitigate climate change by encouraging forest restoration and conservation by planting trees. Our solution is innovative in the form of water utilization and management for small irrigation schemes, and in using natural resources and in using agroforestry technologies.      

This project will improve and increase the farm productivity of the local community farmers , this will create job opportunities to poor rural women, youths, and farmers in the community. Through various agricultural trainings such as soil nutrient management, soil and water management and the use of improved scientific technologies under agroforestry technology  as our core/ central technology. Through participatory demonstrations at the farmers' farms and field days and farmers exchange visits to gain experiences. They will be trained to change their methods of agriculture from mono culture to diversified cropping and use of modern engineering systems like- mulching, no-till planting, pest management, and weed control, applying the sustainable agricultural land management , participatory land use planning methodology for increased crop yields and soil health conservation. It will empower the farmers economically and also they will be able to provide for their families, it will reduce the direct pressures imposed to the community forests and reduce deforestation by 50% .It will improve the conditions of community women, girls in Namanjalala and help reduce the long way of walking searching for fuel wood.

Our goals are:-

a). Enhance implementation through participatory planning, knowledge management and capacity building of communities.

b). Diversify and intensify the forest products, improving agricultural productivity of small scale holder farmers and enhancing environmental conservation in the farm lands.

c).  To empower rural farmers with appropriate technologies in agriculture and farming to enable them escape the threat of hunger and fight poverty. 

d). To stimulate local communities to appreciate and understand the value of land thereby make concerted efforts to protect it as a living natural resource. 

Through our monitoring and evaluation team a group of people who function together in a trusted manner and trust one another and have a common goal and produce good results. They perform participatory monitoring and evaluation, team work and influences others to accomplish their objectives. Our monitoring staff will do this activity on daily and monthly basis. This will be done through a participatory manner where all stake holders will be involved, and project data and documentations prepared and shared, through evidence -based and tangible manner. They do formative evaluation, midterm and terminal evaluations and prepare project activity reports.

Project Indicators:- Through

a). Number of farmers sensitized and trained in agroforestry, push-pull, nature-based solutions and agriculture

b). Number of trees planted by the community farmers

c). Number of demonstrations conducted

d). Number of farmers reached with information on sustainable agricultural land management and participatory land use planning.

e). The number of brochures and leaflets published for training farmers

Agroforestry technology doubles crops, keeping families happy, agroforestry is the only solution that contribute/ combine or produces the needed answers to the problems that affect the community Namanjalala. The ecological impact of trees on conservation of soil and water as a natural resource base is evident, trees contribute to biodiversity and mitigate the natural calamities/disasters. Tree planting/ growing and afforestation support the struggle against environmental degradation, i.e soil erosion, wind erosion, soil fertility loss and degradation of water catchment areas. Agro silvo pastoral is one component of agroforestry system that our farmers use and thrive on in their farms to achieve their goals in agriculture,   

Nagnet CBO has got a total of 15 people working on board of its governance structure, 3 full time workers, 1, woman and 2 men. The seed department has 2 youth, extension section has a mixture of 2 girls and 2 boys, youth people all of them total to 6 part time workers. 4 women nursery attendants part time workers. The treasurer 1 woman part time. There is 11 part time workers and 3 full time workers, 8 women and 6  men who work on the Nagnet CBO.

19 years is the age of NAGNET CBO, in Namanjalala community working on community livelihood improvement through tree planting and agroforestry methods and fighting poverty and environment degradation. Capacity building community farmers and training them and introducing new livelihoods projects such as bee keeping, horticultural plantations of vegetables and spices.

We do observe the 2/3 gender rule and believe in gender equality and equity for successful implementation of our activities, we support the SDG number 5 for that purpose

We provide services and produce products for sale to our customers in the local community and the neighboring locations in Kwanza sub County and the adjacent towns. So we are both product and service providers. We have got a full trained staff in agriculture, livestock, agroforestry and nature conservation. We provide advisory and consultancy services to interested community farmers and the public and private sector.

We shall increase the membership subscription and contribution, increase the target tree seedlings production. Forge new partnerships with other charitable organization in the country, and other service providers in the locality and also sign new agreements with financial institutions like banks and the county government of Trans-Nzoia. Maintain linkages with other organizations involved in the same activities in the green economy. Have some deductions from all income generating activities to be banked for the purpose of sustainability.