Kenya, FAO partner on soil health to boost farm productivity
Discussions focused on advancing soil health initiatives through technology, data-driven decision-making and capacity building to support sustainable soil management.
ITALY – Kenya and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) have committed to strengthening collaboration on soil health to improve agricultural productivity, promote sustainable farming, and enhance long-term food security.
The commitment followed a meeting between Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture and Livestock Development, Sen. Mutahi Kagwe, and FAO Deputy Director-General Beth Bechdol at the organization’s headquarters in Rome, Italy.
Discussions focused on advancing soil health initiatives through technology, data-driven decision-making and capacity building to support sustainable soil management.
Key areas included using technology and soil intelligence to support precision farming, enabling farmers to make informed decisions based on their soil’s specific conditions.
The approach is expected to strengthen agricultural planning and help farmers adopt practices that improve soil fertility, enhance crop performance and promote the sustainable use of natural resources.
For investors in agritech and inputs, this signals demand for soil testing services, digital advisory platforms and precision application technologies tailored to Kenyan growing conditions.
More importantly, the meeting highlighted the need to strengthen the Kenya Integrated Agricultural Management Information System (KIAMIS), which is now integrated with the Kenya Agricultural Data Information Centre (KADIC).
The integration aims to support the use of agricultural data in decision-making, improve access to relevant information and strengthen coordination of initiatives to improve productivity across the sector.
Moreover, reliable data infrastructure matters commercially because it reduces uncertainty for buyers, insurers and lenders assessing agricultural risk.
The two sides also discussed establishing a team of soil health champions to drive awareness and action on sustainable soil management, alongside training more soil scientists to strengthen national capacity in soil research, assessment, and management.
Therefore, developing a stronger pool of specialists is considered essential for addressing soil-related challenges, generating reliable data and providing technical guidance to farmers and institutions.
Healthy soils are essential for crop growth, water retention and nutrient availability, and their degradation can undermine productivity, increase production risks and threaten the sustainability of food systems, according to the FAO.
By strengthening soil science, expanding the use of agricultural technology, and improving access to reliable data, Kenya aims to equip farmers with the information they need to make better production decisions, reinforcing the country’s broader push toward data-driven agriculture.
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