The project will promote African Bird Eye Chilli (ABEC) farming as a sustainable livelihood and climate resilient development enterprise for farmers around kaya Ribe Forest. The capacity of about 500 farners will be built through trainings and on farm demonstrations to produce chilli and value add to make chilli sauce and other products for better markets access. Equipment will be procured for use during demonstrations on farm and also in the small factory to process the chilli. The farmers will also grow trees on their farms as a way of creating adequate shade for the chilli plants, avail wind breaks and also as food tree crops for their families and therefore contribute to food security. The trees will also help in protecting the land against soil and water erosion and therefore help check land degradation and also will be an ease source of wood for domestic use thereby reducing pressure on the protected kaya forest. Each farmer will be expected to grow chilies in a one acre (0.4Ha) farm. The farmers and their households numbering about 1000 will be more resilient to climate change effects as the crop takes a shorter period to grow and produce compared to the traditional maize crop. The farmers and processing group will be linked to better markets for their products and help attract better prices. This will enhance rural farmers? incomes and livelihoods. The fruit trees to be planted will produce fruits for household use and for sell improving their food security and incomes. The extension work will be provided by the ministry of Agriculture, market linkages will be through the ministry of trade and industry and KEBS will certify the products guaranteeing the quality to customers.
The additional food, incomes and on farm vegetation will make less people to enter the kaya to poach trees and for charcoal and firewood and thereby contribute to reduction in the degradation of the kaya forests.
The community members around kaya Ribe forest are poor peasant farmers who rely on rainfed agriculture as a livelihood. Because of climate change, the rains are erratic leading to low agricultural productivity. They grow maize year and out with minimal management of the highly degraded soils. As a result the community is permanently food insecure with limited livelihood options. Many of the youthful men and women turn to the only protected kaya Ribe forest for firewood and timber for sale in the neighbouring markets as a coping mechanism to climate change to get money to buy food and other necessities. This makes them less resilient to climate change effects creating hopelessness in the already poverty stricken people resulting in increased dependence on the declining forest resources. The project aims to promote ABEC farming as a climate smart agriculture and sustainable income generating and livelihood adaptation and coping mechanism in a rapidly changing and cruel climate. The project also will address soil and water conservation measures to secure land fertility and reduce land degradation. Fruit trees and other multiple use plants will be grown on the farm as shade, wind screens and as food to the ever hungry farmers. The produce will be value added through processing and production of other products like chilli sauce to make the enterprise lucrative. With some of the skills and interest already generated in earlier projects, the project will increase production on the farms and be linked to better markets with the accomplishment of KEBS certification. With many of the members being women and some being widowed, it will contribute to securing livelihoods and incomes to rural women and vulnerable community members in the area and ultimately reduce the dependence on the kaya Ribe forest. Agrobiodiversity will be enhanced and biodiversity in kaya Ribe protected areas will be protected. The improved health of forest will result in better ecosystem services delivery such as pollination, rainfall attraction and water springs and aquifer recharges.