Mzee Joseph is a husband, father of 6 children and a respected man in Game Village of Isiolo. Like others in his community, he and his family are subject to frequent droughts and bad farming soil, which causes crop failures, and poor food security and nutrition conditions among vulnerable households. As a result of their environment, the community is purely pastoralist and rarely has access to fresh vegetables.
In February, Kiunga provided the Game Support Group with vegetable seeds and training on soil, water, pest, and disease management. Mr. Joseph took the ideas seriously and established three portions of vegetable gardens. He is finding a lot of joy in taking care of his garden -- and his attention and hard work are already paying off. After just a couple of months, he was able to harvest some vegetables for family consumption!
“This April we have had easy access to food, especially vegetables,” Joseph says. “My family eats rich and varied meals daily.”
Mr. Joseph, whose garden serves as a learning center for others, has also noticed that gardening is even improving social cohesion among support group members and the community as a whole.
“The garden has strengthened our friendship and family ties in the village. We want to grow the garden and continue gardening vegetables all year round for market purposes!”