Successful Young Entrepreneurs Attracted to Farming by Social Media

Daniel Kimani did not think much about farming when he was growing up. But he has become a
national figure since he started fish farming. Mr. Kimani has been featured on Kenyan radio and television. The 29-year-old from Kenya’s Nyandurua County, about 150 kilometres northwest of
Nairobi, graduated from university with a diploma in engineering.

-Frustrated with the lack of available jobs, he started raising fish after hearing on the radio how agriculture could transform his life.

Mr.Kimani training farmers in his farm

Mr. Kimani says, “My dream is to become the best young farmer in Africa and be recognized
as such by the [United Nations] Food and Agriculture Organization.

Samson Ndung’u lives in Murang’a, a town about 60 kilometres northeast of Nairobi. The twenty-three-year old was known for ferrying passengers on the back of his boda-boda, or motorcycle taxi. -While driving a regular client home last year, he tuned his bike’s radio to Coro FM.

-The station was airing a farming program which mentioned Mkulima Young.
-Mr. Ndung’u was intrigued. He recognized a great opportunity when he heard one. So he decided to start a business growing crops in his family’s garden.

-He harvests vegetables such as peppers, tomatoes, spinach and cucumber, which he sells through

-He, too, has been awarded the status of Mkulima Young Champion.
-The 37-year-old describes Mkulima Young Champions as young people who are not only successful in agriculture, but are inspiring others to do the same.

-Mr. Macharia is an agricultural expert and former extension officer. He says: “By having Mkulima

-Mr. Macharia uses social media to rebrand farming to thousands of Kenyan youth.

-Mkulima Young has created a virtual marketplace called Mkulima Soko [farmer’s market] where
farmers can sell their crops online. Mr. Macharia says, “The culture is changing.

-You’d be surprised at how many rural youth are on social media.” Through the Mkulima Soko site, young farmers have made 3,000 online sales. Over 10,000 new users have
registered for the site.

Mr.Kimani(right) in his farm

Margaret Muchui is the principal research officer at the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute, or KARI. Ms. Muchui coordinates KARI projects that involve youth across Kenya, and has monitored the growth of Mkulima
-Young over the last year. She says, “They have seen that it is possible to get more money from
agriculture compared to formal employment.” Ms. Muchui sees Mkulima Young as a forum
where young people can engage with each other and share concerns and ideas.

-She adds: “It’s been quite successful because it is an interactive forum. The answers to many
questions, or solutions to technology or markets, are provided online. The youths make
money from their enterprises.”

-Mr. Kimani’s farming techniques are inspiring. The waste from his fish ponds is filtered
through stone-filled settlement chambers.

-Then it is used as fertilizer for his strawberry plants, which he irrigates with the filtered water.

Mr. Kimani says: “Through Mkulima Young , I’ve become a fish farming consultant and a farm manager in one of the biggest trout fish farms in Kenya. I was earning ksh 65000 but now I’m earning more than  ksh 165000 per month.”

Like our Facebook page: Greenfarm organics

Follow us on Twitter: @nicokirui1