SAGAs
Makueni County Agricultural SAGAs
The Makueni Agricultural Training Center (ATC) is situated 8 kilometers from Wote town in Muvau/Kikumini Ward, along Wote–Kathonzweni road. Established in 2012 in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and KALRO, the center sits on 30 acres at KALRO Kambi Mawe sub-station.
It comprises a school section, demonstration farm, and a 15-room hostel for residential training. The County has also drafted a bill to convert the ATC into a fully-fledged TVET institution.
Mandate
- Provide accredited training on modern farming technologies.
- Showcase demonstrations in agriculture and allied development fields.
- Preserve and improve agricultural knowledge access.
- Conduct adaptive farm trials and promote commercialization of farm enterprises.
Established under the Makueni County Fruit Development and Marketing Authority Act (Amendment) 2017, the Authority oversees fruit processing and marketing, including the Kalamba fruit processing plant.
Mandate
- Manage fruit processing infrastructure and promote best practices in production and marketing.
- Collect, collate, and maintain a fruit sector database.
- Advise on research priorities and levies in the fruit sector.
Production Lines
- Puree Line: Processes 5000kg of mangoes/hour (operational since 2017).
- Ready-to-Drink Line: EU-IDEAS-funded unit producing 4500 bottles/hour.
- Water Packaging Line: 8000 bottles/hour capacity under installation.
The Makueni Integrated Grain Value Addition Plant in Makindu was established under the World Bank–funded KDSP Level II grant to promote value addition to pulses and increase farmers’ income.
Key Functions
- Processing: Value addition through drying, cleaning, sorting, grading, and packaging.
- Marketing: Market segmentation and distribution of processed grains.
- Quality Assurance: Production of clean, safe, ready-to-cook pulses.