Why livelihoods? Secure livelihoods offer the extreme poor a pathway to forge their way out of poverty. Our livelihoods programmes aim to ensure Vulnerable communities are able to earn a sustainable living, helping them to learn new skills, improve the productivity and nutritional value of their crops and livestock and set up small businesses to generate more income and access to nutritious foods

Climate Smart Agriculture

We’re supporting communities to adopt Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) practices which adapt their farming systems to become more resilient to a less predictable climate. The practices we are promoting include the diversification of crop varieties, increasing access to improved farming skills and technologies, and strengthening links with the private sector to facilitate access to agricultural inputs from certified seeds, Agro chemicals to new equipment such as solar water pumps, farms equipment

Project staff inspecting large scale plantations of maize & Green grams in the Gafar-Garbatulla Sub County during monitoring visit

Livestock

Our current Programme focuses on, where over 300 hundred Thousand pastoralists and smallholders in the arid and semi-arid areas of Isiolo depend on livestock as their main source of income. The sector therefore has an important role to play in delivering an inclusive and prosperous future for millions of vulnerable people in ASAL.

Supporting Isiolo to develop a modern and competitive beef sector, whilst also innovating models that maximise the extent livestock producers participate in and benefit from higher returns from the sector

We’re supporting communities improving access and uptake of professional inputs and services among pastoralist, Exploring the use of inclusive feedlots and rangeland models and public & private sector in milk and meat processing capacity to increase product value and open up more efficient routes to the market

Market systems Development & Value Chain Developments

Caritas Isiolo is strategic on ensuring improved food and nutrition security and community resilience, while contributing to context specific climate adaptation strategies. We support SMEs involved in meat and milk processing and LMVs in availing nutritious foods to the target communities, their still exist a big gap in scaling up LMVs and building their capacity and linkage with private sector especially distributors of nutritious food products to ensure sustainable availability of food at the hard-to-reach rural.

Gatbatulla town based Last Mile Vendor

Achievements

In Isiolo, we supported number households to productively cultivate more acres of land using climate smart agricultural techniques. The resulting harvest of mixed crops meant that families had a good variety and quantity of food in their diet, far exceeding the county average

This project meets the immediate short-term nutritious food gaps while building longer term resilience of targeted communities. Disbursement of 7.5M Grants given to address the short-term financial needs of the Last Mile Vendors (LMVs), while integrating loan and financial management training focused on long-term changes in behavior and approaches to business

In Isiolo county, we continued to build the capacity of communities to recover and respond to drought by ensuring that both households and livestock had continuous access to clean water. Activities included supporting a rapid response team to rehabilitate XX boreholes serving over XX people, and promoting the importance of hygiene at the school and community level.

Agro-ecology

Caritas Isiolo, with the support of the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD), has embraced agroecology in four wards; Burat, Ngaremara, Oldonyiro, and Merti benefiting 342 direct participants, including farmers in Huji Tante, Atoot, Game, Lotiki, Camp Garba, Leparua, Kawalash & Ngaresilicon, and learners in Kawalash, Hekima, Manyatta Zebra, Chumvi Ere, Lenguruma, and Akadeli primary schools. This agroecological initiative aligns with CAFOD’s new strategic framework, inspired by Pope Francis’s encyclical “Laudato si on care for our common home,” aiming to promote sustainable agricultural practices in harmony with the environment.

Agroecology is a method of agricultural practice that prioritizes environmentally sustainable approaches, considering the inter-relationships between living and non-living factors to optimize resource utilization. Moreover, it aims at promoting the well-being of soil, plants, animals, and humans. In the current global crisis on climate change, agroecology emerges as a farming strategy that actively contributes to the well-being of the biosphere.

 

A demonstration on making of a keyhole garden during refresher training of learners on agro-ecology in Kawalash primary school

Within agroecology, energy follows a cyclical pattern, forming a continuous loop. This loop ensures the optimal use of resources, minimizing waste and establishing a more self-sustaining agricultural system. The cyclical nature of energy flow signifies its reuse and recycling within the agricultural framework.

A key focus of agroecology is the enhancement of soil health through practices such as double digging, the use of manure, and companion planting to boost soil fertility. This emphasis on soil health translates into improved plant health, leading to higher crop yields in both quality and quantity. Consequently, the produce is chemical-free, providing a healthier option for human consumption. Additionally, crop by-products are repurposed as feed for livestock.

The environmentally friendly practices integral to agroecology encompass the application of biopesticides, the use of organic seeds, manure, deep/double digging, and companion planting, among other sustainable methods

Preparation of biopesticides by farmers from Kawalash.