Conservation through Education
Access to quality education is a major challenge in parts of Kenya due to insufficient school infrastructure and an acute shortage of teachers. The organization, partnering with the Ministry of Education both at County and National government levels is strategically positioned to pursue the improvement of enrolment, retention, completion, and transition rates, along with ensuring the continuity of certain aspects of local cultures while instilling environmental conservation awareness among the learners and households. K-BIAN through the Lishe Bora Fortified Instant Porridge School Feeding Program is promoting balanced nutrition to realize the learning potential of children and maximize returns to educational investments. The Fortified Delicious, Nutritious and Tasty instant porridge our is a pre-cooked blend of whole maize, soya, sorghum and sweet potato that has been delicately balanced through extrusion and fortified with fifteen (15) micro nutrients. Fortified instant porridge offers several advantages, particularly for improving nutritional intake and can significantly boost the intake of essential nutrients like iron and zinc, potentially reducing deficiencies and improving overall health.
The Lishe Bora Fortified Instant Porridge School Feeding Program program prioritizes locally sourced food, reducing reliance on imported goods and supporting local farmers through aggregation for economies of scale thereby creating economic opportunities for local farmers, vendors, and other stakeholders involved in food production, transportation, and distribution.
The role of K-BIAN is to link the farmers with potential players from the private sector keen on aggregation and processing of whole maize, soya, sorghum and sweet potato. This approach is tailored to address communities’ needs and harness their unique resources, boosting agricultural production, jump-starting local markets and supporting small businesses.
The approach is sustainable and brings about improvements in learner’s access to education and nutrition, whilst strengthening the food and nutritional security of children, households and communities. It also improves access of smallholder farmers to stable markets thus spurring rural development. K-BIAN recognises the significance of sound agroecological practices as a way to build more sustainable and resilient food systems, addressing challenges like climate change, food insecurity, and biodiversity loss.
