A Root and Tuber Crops Conference is set to be held in Nairobi between June 21 and 25th, 2021, at Kenya Agricultural & Livestock Research Organization( KALRO) Headquarter Grounds in Loresho.
This is an initiative between Self Help Africa, the Root and Tubers Crops Unit of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Cooperatives, and KALRO in collaboration with other stakeholders.
This year’s Conference will focus on the cassava value chain with the theme: “Innovative Promotion of Cassava value chain initiatives for Wealth, Food and Nutrition Security in Kenya.
The Conference will create an opportunity to promote cassava as a critical value chain in increasing income, food, and nutrition security among smallholder farmers and Kenyans in general.
Cassava, having been an orphaned crop for a long time, without well-developed value chain structures, and traditionally considered a low-value crop, has recently attracted many development agencies and government attention.
Their collaboration with research institutions has exposed the health value of cassava and the crop’s suitability to moderately harsh climatic conditions, making it a key food security crop for Kenya.
The crop has the potential to boost economic growth and food and income security for smallholder farmers.
It is considered the 4th most important source of carbohydrates for most rural and urban households after maize, wheat, and rice. It is also an important source of industrial starch all over the world.
It is through these facts, interactions, and relationships that there is a need to commercialize the value chain by increasing and strengthening private sector participation and promoting national awareness among the different actors and general public.
This Conference and Trade Fair aims to increase knowledge and uphold innovative positive values and attitudes about cassava’s economic, social, environmental, and food & feed benefits. It also provides a platform for various cassava value chain stakeholders to share their experiences for scale-up.
The meeting seeks to create awareness, knowledge, and understanding of the different products and value of cassava, business opportunities in the value chain, and different forms of cassava utilization.
Participants will also share and gain new intellectual, practical, and professional skills and interventions that have proved successful elsewhere in strengthening the cassava value chain.
The Conference will also provide a platform where actors can share innovations and new technologies outside Kenya to increase engagement along the value chain.
The meeting will focus on Processing, Product Development & Market Access, Agro-processing & Value Addition, Flour Blending, Markets, Best practice Dissemination, Learning and Scaling up, and Innovation & Technologies.
