The UN projects 265 million people face severe food insecurity due to COVID-19. Through Action Africa, 250,000 farmers can now provide food for one million people in East Africa, while millions more are connecting to ongoing advice through Yara’s groundbreaking new digital platform
Anastasia Were Kulundu, in Kakamega, Kenya, has new access to digital connections that can establish enduring food security
The UN projects 265 million people face severe food insecurity due to COVID-19. Through Action Africa, 250,000 farmers can now provide food for one million people in East Africa, while millions more are connecting to ongoing advice through Yara’s groundbreaking new digital platform
By
Yara |
“My main aim as a farmer is to never lack food in my household.” Anastasia Were Kulundu works full-time in Kakamega, Kenya, where she farms maize, cassava, groundnuts, and bananas to feed her parents and two grown children and provide a small income for her children’s education.
Anastasia is at the Yara retailer to receive her share of the 40,000 tons of premium fertilizer Yara has donated in an effort to triple the region’s maize production this year. “Many farmers were late to plant because of the complications of COVID-19,” she says. “The next seasons will be good, thanking God, because of this donation.”
The retailer confirms Anastasia’s farm size and crop mix to ensure she’s eligible for the donation, then scans the QR codes on her 3 bags of fertilizer into Yara’s digital platform, the first of its kind to secure traceability from port to farm in East Africa.
As one of 2 million farmers in Kenya and Tanzania to register with the platform, Anastasia now has a channel for accessing new resources for a more secure food future.
Enabling – and sustaining – food security
The current crisis requires urgent action to prevent permanent social and economic damage. It is also a catalyst for transformational change that can create a more resilient food system for millions of people.
Yara’s Action Africa: Thriving Farms, Thriving Future initiative has seen monumental success in bridging the connectivity divide for the first time ever in these African communities. In just 12 weeks, a team of 50 developers across 3 continents developed a digital platform to track the fertilizer distribution, and to offer farmers like Anastasia, half of whom are women, a first-of-its-kind resource for agronomic advice throughout the growing season. The fertilizer donation is the first of many opportunities to reach these farmers, who could gain access to financial, insurance, market and infrastructure support when additional partners join Yara’s platform.
Partnerships are key to reaching Action Africa’s potential
Robust partnerships can offer a range of critical resources in agriculture and beyond, to positively impact millions of lives as communities establish foundational and enduring stability. For Anastasia, Action Africa can help her create the future she envisions for her family. “I’ve done a lot to improve,” she says, “And I desire to do more.”
Action Africa: Thriving Farms, Thriving Future needs your collaboration to create a thriving future for all farmers in Africa and beyond.
Please contact Øystein Botillen, Yara Stakeholder Relations and Business Development Manager, +4745217167, [email protected]
About Yara
Yara grows knowledge to responsibly feed the world and protect the planet. Supporting our vision of a world without hunger, we pursue a strategy of sustainable value growth, promoting climate-friendly and high-yielding crop nutrition solutions for the world’s farming community and food industry.
Yara’s ambition is to be the Crop Nutrition Company for the Future. We are committed to creating value for our customers, shareholders and society at large, as we work to develop a more sustainable food value chain. To achieve our ambition, we have taken the lead in developing digital farming tools for precision farming, and work closely with partners throughout the food value chain to improve the efficiency and sustainability of agriculture and food production.
Founded in 1905 to solve the emerging famine in Europe, Yara has established a unique position as the industry’s only global crop nutrition company. With our integrated business model and a worldwide presence of around 16,000 employees and operations in over 60 countries, we offer a proven track record of responsible and reliable returns. In 2019, Yara reported revenues of USD 12.9 billion.