NAIROBI, Kenya — Kenya and Israel are stepping up cooperation on irrigation and climate-smart agriculture as farmers, researchers, government officials and development partners seek practical solutions to worsening water shortages and unpredictable weather patterns.
Speaking at the “Growing Together: A Showcase of Climate-Smart Agriculture” event at Mount Carmel Convent Farm in Lavington, Israeli Ambassador to Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Malawi and Seychelles Gideon Behar said expanding irrigation should be among Kenya’s top agricultural priorities as climate change continues to disrupt food production.
“The issue of climate change is indeed here. Now, when I look at Kenya and Africa, I know that the most pressing issue in my opinion is really to move into irrigation,” Behar said.
The event brought together representatives from government, research institutions, academia, development organisations, the private sector, diplomatic missions and faith-based organisations to examine how technology and partnerships can improve agricultural productivity.
Behar said agricultural technologies must be simple enough for farmers to understand and adopt, citing drip irrigation as one of the practical approaches that could help communities use scarce water more efficiently.
“Every answer that we give must be simple. It must be an answer a farmer can understand. A farmer in Embu, a farmer in Kisumu… they must have access to simple solutions that change life,” he said.
Secretary to the Cabinet Mercy Wanjau said water security was inseparable from food security and called for stronger partnerships between the Kenyan Government, development partners, communities and Israel.
“Food is life. Without water, there’s no food, there’s no life,” Wanjau said.
She cited the Swahili proverb “Jiwe moja haliinjiki chungu”, stressing that addressing climate and agricultural challenges would require different stakeholders to work together.
“Climate crisis is here with us… So the question is, what must we do? We must join hands and co-create sustainable solutions,” Wanjau said.
Farmers identify water as biggest challenge
The urgency of irrigation was illustrated by the experience of farmers in Embu County, where water access remains a major constraint despite the availability of productive farmland.
Nora Igoki, a farmer from Evurore Ward in Mbeere North Sub-County, leads the Green Paradise Water Project, a community initiative whose members contribute towards irrigation from the Thuchi River.
The group has about 780 members, but more than 380 still lack access to water, highlighting the gap between agricultural potential and reliable irrigation infrastructure.
“At our place, land is not an issue. The issue is water. That is what we are lacking,” Igoki said.
After lobbying the government through their MP, the group received pipes that enabled it to provide water to more than 400 members. CultivAid subsequently supported the establishment of a demonstration farm, providing drip irrigation equipment, farm inputs and training.
The farm is now producing tomatoes, kales and other crops, with some farmers already selling their produce.
Igoki said the initiative had also encouraged young people who had previously moved to urban areas in search of employment to return to agriculture.
She called for more demonstration farms to be established so that farmers could gain practical exposure to irrigation technologies and climate-smart production methods.
From research to the farm
CultivAid Nursery Manager Wincate Kariuki said the organisation began producing seedlings after identifying difficulties farmers faced in obtaining quality planting materials.
The nursery initially had an annual capacity of 1.2 million seedlings and distributed about one million seedlings to farmers in Embu and other counties last year, she said.
CultivAid has since expanded its nursery operations and established model farms where farmers receive training in drip irrigation, bed preparation and integrated pest management.
The organisation has also introduced attachment and internship programmes to give young agronomists practical experience working directly with farmers.
Kariuki urged young people to view agriculture as an economic opportunity rather than an outdated occupation.
“Do not only change your WhatsApp status. Change your mentality on farming. Grab something, grow with something home, learn something,” she said.
A similar model is being implemented at the Sisters of Mount Carmel, where drip irrigation and greenhouse technology are being used to grow crops such as capsicum.
Experts call for locally developed solutions
Dr Ayao Sindu of the Kenya Water Institute said research and agricultural innovation would have little impact unless knowledge and technologies reached farmers in a form they could use.
He said changing weather patterns were placing additional pressure on agricultural systems and increasing the need for farmers to adopt new approaches to water and crop management.
“Knowledge in the books or on the shelves does not transform anything. It must be fed, it must be supplied, it must be presented to those who make better use of it,” Sindu said.
He pointed to digital agriculture, remote sensing, artificial intelligence and precision agriculture as technologies increasingly being used to improve decisions on planting, irrigation, pest surveillance and market access.
Sindu called for closer cooperation between research institutions, universities, government agencies, extension services, private companies, financial institutions and farmers.
He also cautioned against imposing uniform solutions across regions with different climatic and agricultural conditions.
“What happens in Nairobi cannot actually practically work in Embu. What works in Embu can’t work in Nyanza. So it’s important that we involve these farmers… to co-create solutions that are sufficient in their areas,” he said.
Kenya-Israel cooperation
Behar said Kenya and Israel had cooperated in agriculture for decades, with thousands of Kenyan farmers and agricultural professionals travelling to Israel for training before returning to apply the knowledge locally.
He said the partnership had expanded beyond agriculture to areas including water management, science, technology, energy, defence and cybersecurity.
Behar highlighted Israel’s experience in irrigation and wastewater treatment, saying about 50 per cent of Israeli agriculture is irrigated and the country purifies about 97 per cent of its sewage water for reuse.
He said technologies such as drip irrigation could provide useful lessons for Kenya as the country seeks to expand agricultural production while facing increasing water constraints.
The Israeli Embassy, he added, was ready to work with the Kenyan Government, the Catholic Church, Water for Mercy and CultivAid on technology transfer and agricultural development.
“What we need to do is to make the knowledge accessible, is to help the ones who want to create the change to make the change,” Behar said.
Water remains central to food security
Nairobi Archbishop Philip Anyolo also placed water at the centre of discussions on food security, describing it as fundamental to both human life and agricultural production.
“The basic thing for our lives is water. It’s a basic need. And the basic need for growth is water,” Anyolo said.
He cited the Kikuyu expression “Kuuga na gwika”, meaning that people must combine words with action.
Father Peter Kiari, Executive Director of Caritas Nairobi, said the Archdiocese of Nairobi was implementing programmes focused on food security, water and livelihoods, alongside socio-economic empowerment initiatives such as financial literacy.
“We want to empower our people so that they can earn their own livelihood and live a dignified life,” Kiari said.
The event concluded with the planting of fruit trees and a tour of the demonstration farm, where participants viewed irrigation systems, greenhouses and crops.
The experiences shared by farmers such as Igoki underscored the scale of the challenge facing Kenya: climate-smart technologies can improve productivity, but their impact will remain limited unless communities have reliable access to water, affordable equipment, technical knowledge and markets.
