Expert calls for skills training to help struggling grassroots businesses become profitable
From her daily interactions with farmers and traders, Joyce says training and upskilling tops the list of the needs mostly required by grassroots businesses.
Grassroots farmers and traders in the country, particularly in rural and informal sectors, reportedly face a myriad of challenges that hinder their ability to thrive.
From poultry farming to vegetable growing and animal rearing, such small-scale businesses form the backbone of the economy, yet they struggle with critical issues that remain unattended to decisively.
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Speaking to The Eastleigh Voice, a programme officer from a community-based support programme under the MasterCard Foundation, shed light on the most pressing needs of grassroots farmers and traders.
With a focus on the western region, the programme officer who identified herself as Joyce, said the small-scale businesses, despite being essential to the region's economy, suffer silent battles that are often overlooked.
Training and upskilling
From her daily interactions with the farmers and traders, Joyce says training and upskilling tops the list of the needs mostly required by the grassroots businesses.
She emphasises that while many businesses are driven by hard work and dedication, they often lack the necessary skills to maximise productivity and efficiency.
"Without proper training, these small-scale operations cannot achieve their full potential, making it harder to compete in the broader market," Joyce said.
"From the communities we have engaged with and upskilled through training and capacity-building programmes, we've observed significant growth in their production and sales."
She added that a majority of them are reporting huge profit margins, compared to the period before the training and upskilling.
Another major challenge that Joyce highlighted is the lack of information on lucrative markets, noting that many grassroot farmers and traders are unaware of where to sell their products at the best prices.
Knowledge gap
According to her, the knowledge gap often leads to reduced income and financial instability, and thus by connecting local businesses with market information, she believes the farmers and traders could make more informed decisions, boosting their profitability.
Further complicating their situation is the issue of record keeping.
Joyce says without proper records and bookkeeping, these businesses struggle to track their finances, manage resources and make sound decisions.
"The inability to maintain accurate records has for some time been a significant barrier to securing financial support and growing the business in a sustainable way."
Notably, access to credit remains another crucial need for the growth of these grassroots enterprises.
Despite the growing potential, many local farmers and traders have been reported to face difficulties in accessing credit to expand their operations.
Joyce's insights underscore the urgent need for targeted interventions to empower these local entrepreneurs and ensure the long-term success of grassroots farming in Western Kenya as well as other parts of the country.
She called on the government, through its support programmes, to ensure marginalised groups have opportunities for business education and training.
Nevertheless, she emphasised the need for creating tailored programmes that design interventions that address the specific challenges faced by these groups.
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