As part of ongoing work in Kenya's Kilifi region to improve the access of 2,500 smallholder farmers to markets in Kenya's Home Grown School Meals (HGSM) programme, Imperial College London's Partnership for Child Development have been promoting the exchange of knowledge among traders and farmers on which markets are best to sell their produce to. 

To date, PCD have assisted in developing and disseminating both a schools database and stakeholder mapping which list all the relevant schools and reliable markets in the counties. In addition, specific information was also provided to traders on potential Farmer Based Organisations in the region, which outlined the quantities of maize they can provide for markets. 

By knowing where, how much and who to do their business with, beneficiaries of the programme can effectively plan their activities and take the best avenues for investment. 

PCD, Dutch development organisation, SNV and local capacity builder Rafiki Participatory Group are also helping farmer groups to develop business plans which focused on targeting financial service provides so they can gain additional funding and work more efficiently. 

• Click to read more about the Kilifi and Lamu intervention