INTO ACTION

Building a flying garden in Malava, Kakamega County.

MISSION STATEMENT

To end food and nutrition insecurity and poverty by teaching income-creating farming skills to vulnerable households and communities in Kenya.

From Kibera to Kisumu . . .

KIBERA AND MATHARE -- The FLYING GARDEN project was conceived during the Covid-19 pandemic to mitigate the effects of interruptions in the rural-to-urban food supply chain by teaching and encouraging city dwellers to raise food locally.
- The goal was to build 1,000 flying gardens in a year.
- From its start in Kibera, HHFI expanded the program to Mathare, partnering with Mathare Ghetto Farmers. HHFI taught Ghetto Farmers how to grow vegetables and how to generate a profit selling vegetables to the community.

The next generation . . .

PRIMARY SCHOOLS -- as part of its COMMUNITY OUTREACH effort, HHFI initiated relationships with a number of schools in the Nairobi area.
- The older primary school children were taught to make flying gardens and plant trees.
- HHFI established community gardens at each school. The vegetables are used for the school feeding program.
- The children are being taught to cultivate gardens and are passing this knowledge on to their parents and friends.
- HHFI demonstrated that vegetables can be turned into ready cash by selling produce and buying school uniforms for needy students.

Online learning . . .

UGANDA -- Through the SEEDS PROGRAM, HHFI provides seeds to cooperative groups throughout East Africa and parts of West Africa. Skills training sessions are conducted via WhatsApp.
- HHFI developed a series of standardized training modules for use in teaching agricultural skills.
- Modules include soil fertility management, conservation agriculture, sustainable agriculture, integrated pest management, farm management and entrepreneurship.

Face to face teaching and training . . .

WESTERN KENYA -- FARMERS' TRAINING program. HHFI is a face-to-face provider of agricultural skills training services to vulnerable populations in Western Kenya, including small farmers, community-based groups, institutions and schools.
- Farmers' training workshops include classroom and practical learning.
- The agricultural practices and methods discussed in the training sessions are designed to maximize available resources, increase food security and diversify the diet.