Help farmers in Kenya reap a better harvest by supporting REAP this Harvest Season
REAP works with poor farmers in western Kenya, teaching them how to look after their land using locally available resources, so as to get more reliable yields and better output for their work. Our main focus is on caring for the soil so it is not washed away by erosion or burnt by the hot sun, and teaching on how to increase soil fertility in various ways including incorporating the right trees in the farm. We are actively promoting Vetiver grass to control soil erosion, as well as planting of both leguminous trees and leguminous cover crops. We also promote the use of animal manure, and particularly the value of dairy goats for providing manure as well as milk. With the challenges of climate change we have started challenging farmers to grow those crops that are more suitable for the less predictable conditions we now have. Our strategy is to motivate people from the Bible by working with creation and thinking of others, and when people are challenged by having teaching that they can put into practice from their own labour and resources.
Here are some examples of what contributions to REAP can achieve (numbers in brackets refer to the pictures:
- £9 will buy 10 litres of fuel for a motorbike enabling our staff to reach farmers where they are.
- £20 will buy a tent for drying vegetables including Moringa as well as natural medicines (1. Pastor Ben by a tent with Moringa leaves drying)
- £40 will cover the cost of a set of tools for a tree nursery. (2. A tree nursery by Lake Victoria)
- £50 can pay for the rent of a piece of land for a year so that a community can multiply up Vetiver grass for sharing in the community (3. A Vetiver grass nursery for the community)
- £60 will pay for a part time extension worker taking our teaching to the farmers for a month (4. Bishop Silas, one of our extension team with his Vetiver Grass hedge)
- £65 will cover the printing cost of 1,000 leaflets which we produce on both Biblical and technical topics
- £100 can provide a young dairy goat to a family (5. A dairy goat with her feed in a simple house)
- £120 can cover the cost of displaying our teaching ideas to farmers at an open day at the Agricultural Training Centre (6. REAP stand at the climate change conference)
- £240 will cover the cost of a participant at a week’s intensive residential training including materials to take home after the training (7. A practical session during a training seminar)
For more information contact Dr Roger Sharland on [email protected]
