Agricultural sustainability and financial inclusion through warehouse receipts: A baseline study from Uasin Gishu and Bungoma

This baseline study assessed the implementation of the Warehouse Receipt System (WRS) and its influence on agricultural sustainability and financial inclusion among 200 smallholder farmers cultivating maize and soybean in Uasin Gishu and Bungoma counties, Kenya. The study focused on storage prac...

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Autores principales: Kenduiywo, Benson, Koech, Grace, Ngige, Chris Mwangi, Odhiambo, Kizito, Ambani, Lilian, Ngetich, Felix K.
Formato: Informe técnico
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: 2025
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/178331
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author Kenduiywo, Benson
Koech, Grace
Ngige, Chris Mwangi
Odhiambo, Kizito
Ambani, Lilian
Ngetich, Felix K.
author_browse Ambani, Lilian
Kenduiywo, Benson
Koech, Grace
Ngetich, Felix K.
Ngige, Chris Mwangi
Odhiambo, Kizito
author_facet Kenduiywo, Benson
Koech, Grace
Ngige, Chris Mwangi
Odhiambo, Kizito
Ambani, Lilian
Ngetich, Felix K.
author_sort Kenduiywo, Benson
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description This baseline study assessed the implementation of the Warehouse Receipt System (WRS) and its influence on agricultural sustainability and financial inclusion among 200 smallholder farmers cultivating maize and soybean in Uasin Gishu and Bungoma counties, Kenya. The study focused on storage practices, WRS awareness and use, post-harvest losses, climate-smart agriculture (CSA) adoption, financial behaviour, and digital access. Results indicate stark contrasts between the two counties in terms of WRS awareness, adoption of CSA practices, digital literacy, and access to credit. WRS awareness stood at 37% in Uasin Gishu but was considerably lower in Bungoma (3.8% among maize farmers and 8.1% among soybean farmers). Despite this low awareness, willingness to adopt agriGHALA and CSA was notably high: 77% in Uasin Gishu, 46.2% in Bungoma maize, and 97.3% in Bungoma soybean farmers. However, actual use of the agriGHALA storage system remained minimal (only 4% of Uasin Gishu farmers and 1.4% of Bungoma soybean farmers had ever used the system). Key reasons for non-adoption included lack of awareness (82% in Uasin Gishu and 100% in Bungoma maize), storage cost, and distance to facilities. Post-harvest losses were widespread: in Uasin Gishu, losses were mainly due to pests (46%) and mould (33%), while in Bungoma, poor drying (69.2%) and pests (71.6%) were dominant. Yields also varied significantly, with Uasin Gishu farmers harvesting an average of 22.76 bags/acre of maize compared to 9.42 bags/acre in Bungoma maize and 4.04 bags/ acre in Bungoma soybean. Financial inclusion remains limited, only 1% of Uasin Gishu maize farmers accessed credit, compared to 11.5% in Bungoma maize and 4.1% in soybean. Though only 15–39% were aware that WRS could be used as collateral, 91.9% of Bungoma soybean farmers expressed willingness to take WRS-backed loans. Digital access showed disparities: smartphone ownership was 73% in Uasin Gishu, 38.5% in Bungoma maize, and 67.6% in Bungoma soybean. The cost of devices and data was cited as the primary barrier by up to 88.5% of farmers in Bungoma. Climate change awareness was high (63–73%), with CSA adoption highest in Uasin Gishu maize (52%) and Bungoma soybean (51.4%). These findings highlight the need for targeted WRS awareness campaigns, climate-smart training, and expansion of digital and financial services to build resilient, market-integrated, and climate-adaptive agricultural systems.
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spelling CGSpace1783312025-11-28T02:03:21Z Agricultural sustainability and financial inclusion through warehouse receipts: A baseline study from Uasin Gishu and Bungoma Kenduiywo, Benson Koech, Grace Ngige, Chris Mwangi Odhiambo, Kizito Ambani, Lilian Ngetich, Felix K. evaluation climate-smart agriculture resilience storehouses This baseline study assessed the implementation of the Warehouse Receipt System (WRS) and its influence on agricultural sustainability and financial inclusion among 200 smallholder farmers cultivating maize and soybean in Uasin Gishu and Bungoma counties, Kenya. The study focused on storage practices, WRS awareness and use, post-harvest losses, climate-smart agriculture (CSA) adoption, financial behaviour, and digital access. Results indicate stark contrasts between the two counties in terms of WRS awareness, adoption of CSA practices, digital literacy, and access to credit. WRS awareness stood at 37% in Uasin Gishu but was considerably lower in Bungoma (3.8% among maize farmers and 8.1% among soybean farmers). Despite this low awareness, willingness to adopt agriGHALA and CSA was notably high: 77% in Uasin Gishu, 46.2% in Bungoma maize, and 97.3% in Bungoma soybean farmers. However, actual use of the agriGHALA storage system remained minimal (only 4% of Uasin Gishu farmers and 1.4% of Bungoma soybean farmers had ever used the system). Key reasons for non-adoption included lack of awareness (82% in Uasin Gishu and 100% in Bungoma maize), storage cost, and distance to facilities. Post-harvest losses were widespread: in Uasin Gishu, losses were mainly due to pests (46%) and mould (33%), while in Bungoma, poor drying (69.2%) and pests (71.6%) were dominant. Yields also varied significantly, with Uasin Gishu farmers harvesting an average of 22.76 bags/acre of maize compared to 9.42 bags/acre in Bungoma maize and 4.04 bags/ acre in Bungoma soybean. Financial inclusion remains limited, only 1% of Uasin Gishu maize farmers accessed credit, compared to 11.5% in Bungoma maize and 4.1% in soybean. Though only 15–39% were aware that WRS could be used as collateral, 91.9% of Bungoma soybean farmers expressed willingness to take WRS-backed loans. Digital access showed disparities: smartphone ownership was 73% in Uasin Gishu, 38.5% in Bungoma maize, and 67.6% in Bungoma soybean. The cost of devices and data was cited as the primary barrier by up to 88.5% of farmers in Bungoma. Climate change awareness was high (63–73%), with CSA adoption highest in Uasin Gishu maize (52%) and Bungoma soybean (51.4%). These findings highlight the need for targeted WRS awareness campaigns, climate-smart training, and expansion of digital and financial services to build resilient, market-integrated, and climate-adaptive agricultural systems. 2025-12-14 2025-11-27T11:11:48Z 2025-11-27T11:11:48Z Report https://hdl.handle.net/10568/178331 en Open Access application/pdf Kenduiywo, B.; Koech, G.; Ngige, C.M.; Odhiambo, K.; Ambani, L.; Ngetich, F.K. (2025) Agricultural sustainability and financial inclusion through warehouse receipts: A baseline study from Uasin Gishu and Bungoma. 28 p.
spellingShingle evaluation
climate-smart agriculture
resilience
storehouses
Kenduiywo, Benson
Koech, Grace
Ngige, Chris Mwangi
Odhiambo, Kizito
Ambani, Lilian
Ngetich, Felix K.
Agricultural sustainability and financial inclusion through warehouse receipts: A baseline study from Uasin Gishu and Bungoma
title Agricultural sustainability and financial inclusion through warehouse receipts: A baseline study from Uasin Gishu and Bungoma
title_full Agricultural sustainability and financial inclusion through warehouse receipts: A baseline study from Uasin Gishu and Bungoma
title_fullStr Agricultural sustainability and financial inclusion through warehouse receipts: A baseline study from Uasin Gishu and Bungoma
title_full_unstemmed Agricultural sustainability and financial inclusion through warehouse receipts: A baseline study from Uasin Gishu and Bungoma
title_short Agricultural sustainability and financial inclusion through warehouse receipts: A baseline study from Uasin Gishu and Bungoma
title_sort agricultural sustainability and financial inclusion through warehouse receipts a baseline study from uasin gishu and bungoma
topic evaluation
climate-smart agriculture
resilience
storehouses
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/178331
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