USE OF CO-OPERATIVE DEVELOPMENT MODEL, A STEER SHIP TRANSFORMATIONAL AGENDA OF THE COUNTY GOVERNMENT OF NANDI, TAKES TO GREAT STRIDES FINANCIAL INCLUSION IN AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENTS IN NANDI.
Nandi co-operative sector proves to be an efficient and effective tool of ensuring a substantial number of farmers, who are the priority stakeholders in agriculture, have access to available financial opportunities to scale up their economic ventures.
Owing to this and as a govern of the functions and links between initiatives and associations of sector interest to its people, the County Government of Nandi through the department of Agriculture and Co-operative Development ensured that the sector is included and made viable to adequately host and participate in essential supporting financial structures that provides useful and affordable financing, which allows for the sector to deliver in a responsible and sustainable way.
As a result, the main participating financial actors that the County Government of Nandi has merged with to scale development activities of co-operatives in Nandi are National Agricultural and Rural Inclusive Grant Project (NARIGP) and Agriculture Sector Development Support Program (ASDSP). Their role has seen development and implementation of various beneficial facets within the dairy, maize, potato, poultry and avocado value chains. NARIGP targets rural localities which make up ninety nine percent of Nandi, in an aim to increase productivity thus profitability of agricultural activities in these localities. ASDSP main objective is commercialization of ventures in the various areas of agriculture, a priority if co-operatives are to diversify and increase their financial gains.
The focused financial products and services were directed to mainly inform on developing projects, provision of savings facilities through discounts and subsidies, credit and insurance within co-operative societies qualified for funding.
Through the strategy of having the co-operative sector as a model in financial access and inclusivity, the County Government of Nandi has recorded achievements of its targets especially in areas of deepening penetration of agricultural development services in rural areas.
Also are various engagements to increase formal financial inclusion through activating and expanding partnership offers within these programs.
The County Government of Nandi has also tasked its directorate of co-operative development under the department of Agriculture and Co-operative Development to reform the policies constricting responsive approaches to efficient development operations within the co-operative societies’ structures in Nandi, a task under the Agriculture Sector Development Support Program (ASDSP).
The County Government of Nandi under the stewardship of H.E Stephen Arap Sang is committed to ensuring these financial support programs scale up the agricultural co-operatives in Nandi by ensuring it finds and implement solutions beyond their local markets, that co-operatives have adequate presence within partnerships and to enhance the co-operatives capacity to improve their profitability and productivity.
For more detailed and specific project developments within co-operatives in Nandi, skim through agriculture and co-operative development news portal on the Nandi County website www.nandi.go.ke.