KickStart International

This project will empower small-scale farmers in Eastern Kenya with KickStart's MoneyMaker irrigation pumps to increase their incomes and lift themselves out of poverty. Over 70% of poor people in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) are rural farmers who rely on small, rain-fed farms for food and income: Enabling these poor farming families to make more money will have the greatest effect on eliminating extreme poverty on the continent (Source: IFAD). One of the fastest, most cost-effective ways for small-scale farmers to significantly increase their incomes is to transition from rain-fed to irrigated agriculture. Most farmers grow 1-2 harvests per year when it rains and sell them into crowded markets for low prices only to go hungry when it is dry. Irrigating with KickStart's pumps breaks this cycle, allowing for year-round harvests and dry season crop sales when prices are high, ending both hunger and poverty. On average, pumps increase income from irrigated crops alone by nearly 500%/year.