Kenya Business Guide launches sector brief on agriculture
The Kenya Business Guide (KBG) has launched its first sector brief on agriculture at the Strathmore Business School.
The brief contains an overview of current trends in the agriculture sector and an analysis of its projected trajectory.
The Kenya Business Guide (KBG) is an initiative that seeks to support the improvement and strengthening of the business environment in Kenya by providing access to information on key features of both the private and public sector prerequisites in the effective functioning of business.
“The agriculture sector remains at the core of Kenya’s economy. Socioeconomic transformation and wealth creation will be driven by improvements in productivity and value-addition across the entire sector’s portfolio,’’ said policy economist Mr Sahil Shah.
Despite a 25% reduction in the output of maize in 2017 due to adverse weather conditions and a shrink in the overall percentage contribution of the agriculture sector to GDP, the Kenya Business Guide points to concerted efforts outlined in the upcoming Medium Term Plan 3 as a clear indication for improving prospects in the sector as a whole.
‘‘We must leverage the synergies between the agriculture and manufacturing sector to drive productivity, value-addition and employment creation in both sectors,’’ he pointed out.
“Urban Agriculture holds the key to countering youth unemployment and the negative perception of agricultural opportunities among the youth,” noted Mr Shah.
The launch of the sector brief comes two weeks after the introduction of KBG’s new project strategy which introduces a focus on improving access to value-added information for economic policy and private sector development.
‘‘The KBG strategy takes a holistic, full circle approach to private sector development targeting all key actors within the business environment and ensuring they have the right information to make the right decisions,’’ he concluded.
The Kenya Business Guide will periodically release sector and policy briefs, researched and developed in collaboration with Strathmore Business School.