Matonyok

About Naretoi Self Help Group

This self help group was formed three years ago and currently has forty members. Their livelihoods revolve around agro and pastoral agriculture. This involves cattle fattening and crop farming on their seven acres of land. They farm tomatoes and onions which are sold to local markets in Mombasa and Nairobi. The profits they reinvest into buying cattle and goats for fattening.

The main challenges the group highlighted;

-They have whole areas of farmland that are not cultivated since the group can only farm for one season as during the rainy season the area becomes swampy. Therefore there is a need to diversify to growing crops that can thrive in swampy environments.

-They need capital to increase their livestock and expand their abilities to profit from cow fattening.-The group requires financial advocacy, as currently “The profit is in the cow, not the banks”. But they wish to move forward into banking to enable greater access to vital loans.