One hen campaign project, Kenya

Project name: One Hen Campaign Project- Changing lives one hen at a time

Project location: Keroka, Kenya

Website: www.onehencampaignproject.org

Facebook: www.facebook.com/onehencampaignproject/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/onehencampaign

Project discription

Innovation Empowerment Programme was formed by 4 students from the University of Nairobi the year 2010. We were inspired by a gift of a chicken each of us received from grandmothers’ as per our traditional practice and with the help of neighbor’s cocks, our chicken started laying fertilized eggs and hatched them into chicks. As the hens multiplied, we could sale eggs and hens to buy stationery, pay our school fees and uniform. Little did we know years later in a campus room we will share above experiences after we unsuccessfully looked for internship. We envisioned a one stop shop for chicken farmer to empower rural youths and women starting with one hen at a time.

We went to our rural villages mobilized women and youths to form self help groups train them on entrepreneurship, agribusiness, poultry management and cross cutting issues for a month, then lend each member of the groups one hen in a coop which they raise and at the end of the year each returns 2 hens one time as a social responsibility for others to benefit. We target unemployed youths, school dropouts and those involved in drug abuse and gambling. Over 70% of our beneficiaries are women/ women led households most of whom survive on less than $1 a day. Chickens can't be taken for granted; they are a vital source of livelihood. Chickens are low maintenance and can be reared at home where women are juggling a myriad of tasks i.e. looking after small children, pounding and sifting grains, cooking, growing vegetables, collecting water and firewood. Chickens are sold easily for cash when needed to cover basic household needs. They are one of few household possessions over which women and youths can easily keep control. They provide eggs as well as meat: vital sources of protein for the family.

The project has created opportunities along the poultry value chain and as a result with beneficiaries we have put in place chicken feed processing plant that enables them get subsidized feeds for their chicken it has also created employment for our fellow youths. So far we have reached 50,000 households in rural Kenya and we have won over 3 global awards i.e. World Bank jobs knowledge award, among Rockefeller top 100 next century innovations and recognition by President Obama’s Young African Leaders fellowship program in 2014. We look forward to spend the award prize of 15,000 Euros to increase the number of hens we give from one to five for each homestead that will help us bring on board 600 new beneficiaries.

Goal and purpose of the project

Goal: To empower youths and women economically to be self reliant and be able to give back to the society.
Purpose:
1.  A source of income for women and youths through the sale of eggs, chicken and manure.
2. The project creates self employment amongst the beneficiaries and opens up other opportunities along the poultry value chain i.e. feed formulation.
3. A source of nutrition for participants families and community i.e. consumption of chicken and eggs
4. Instilling the spirit of giving back to the society as a social responsibility i.e. beneficiaries returning 2 hens one time at the end of the year so that others can benefit.
5. Chicken droppings used as organic manure that is environment friendly helps in enriching the soils and beneficiaries use it in kitchen gardening.

Motivation of the applicant team

To fight poverty - as it makes people hopeless and can make one commit crime to earn a living, we feel to always share our story of the gift of a hen that we received from our grandmothers' helped us secure some basic needs in school i.e. pay fees, bought stationary and even school uniform if we could do it and made it why not our fellow youths and women in rural Kenya. 

Use of prize money

We look forward to spend the award prize of 15,000 Euros to increase the number of hens we give from one to five for each homestead that will help us bring on board 600 new beneficiaries. It will help our beneficiaries increase numbers of chicken they keep to help support establishment of a chicken meat processing plant.