On 25th February 2021, the Cabinet, chaired by H.E. President Uhuru Kenyatta, approved the revival of the 4-K Clubs. A return of these clubs to primary schools is an opportunity to provide the perfect environment for pupils to engage in activities within the agricultural value chain holistically.
This revival also sees the incorporation of other thematic areas, including Environmental Conservation, Healthy Living & Nutrition, Civic Engagement and Citizenship, and Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics (STEM). All this is to enhance the practice of agriculture as a skill and integrates seamlessly with the newly rolled out Competency-Based Curriculum. The president is keen on seeing the 4-K Clubs’ success and forming a core part of his Government’s Big 4 Agenda.
To this effect, Citi, in partnership with Junior Achievement (J.A.), seeks to host a Youth Agriculture (Agri) Challenge today (30th June 2021), which aims to encourage youth who are members of the J.A. Club to develop innovative transformational solutions that will solve everyday problems and help create positive change within the Agricultural Sector.
This Challenge will ensure that the students regain an interest in agriculture to improve their livelihoods. Beyond the Competition, the Program will ensure that learners have access to knowledge of agriculture.
Typically, Citi celebrates Global Community Day (GCD) through in-person community volunteer efforts. However, due to the pandemic and the need to maintain social distancing protocols, all Citi GCD events worldwide will be held virtually this year.
The event will be live-streamed online on all major platforms (YouTube, Facebook, Instagram Live, Twitter and the 4-K Clubs website) and also be carried live on T.V. by a nationwide carrier.
All schools countrywide are thus invited to own and participate in the roll-out of the 4-K Clubs by tuning in to watch and letting local communities be aware of the event. They are also asked to partner with the County Governments and key stakeholders to ensure a successful roll-out, implementation, and monitoring & evaluation of the initiative.
After the Launch of the Challenge, Citi and Junior Achievement Kenya, through its network of Schools, Universities, TVETs and Innovation Hubs, will support the students/youth to submit transformational agri-business ideas to develop a database of at least 2,000 ideas.
A panel of judges comprising Citi volunteers, business leaders, Agri-experts will mentor and evaluate the ideas to develop a shortlist of 10 high school ideas and 20 ideas from post-high school that will attend a three-day Boot Camp will support the participants in developing their ideas further.
- •The 10 finalists from the High School Category selected to attend the Boot-Camp and further compete for the National Winner Prize will each receive an Agri Pack of a Kitchen Garden worth KES 30,000. This will ensure that we develop 10 Centers of Agriculture Excellence in our Secondary Schools. Upon successful completion of the Boot-Camp, the finalist will pitch for the ultimate prize, and below are the awarding categories;
- •Winner – KES 50,000 and Agri-Pack valued at KES 150,000
- •1st Runners Up – KES 30,000 and Agri-Pack valued at KES 100,000
- •2nd Runners Up – KES 15,000 and Agri-Pack valued at KES 50,000
- •For the Universities/TVETs/Hubs, they will identify the top 20 ideas/finalists that will attend the Three Day Boot-Camp, and below are the Prizes that they will be competing for:
- •Winner – KES 250,000
- •1st Runner Up – KES 150,000
- •2nd Runner Up – KES 50,000
The pandemic has been difficult for many and has magnified various economic and social issues, most notably food insecurity. This year, António Guterres, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, will convene a global Food Systems Summit (FSS) as part of the Decade of Action to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The Government of Kenya’s development blueprint, the Big 4 Agenda, comprises Food Security. Over the years, young people have not successfully engaged in agriculture despite being a dependable economic source for Kenya. The sector contributes at least 26% of Kenya’s GDP, employs more than 40% of the population and accounts for 65% of export earnings.
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