7^th September 2023 – On Wednesday 6^th September 2023, the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development and the African Agricultural Transformation Initiative (AATI) co-organized a panel discussion at the Africa Climate Summit, held at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre in Nairobi, Kenya. The panel entitled ‘Bridging the gap between Strategy and implementation: Setting in Motion the Climate Smart Agricultural Hub in Kenya,’ brought together various agriculture stakeholders including development partners and the private sector. The keynote address at the session was provided by Mr. Jonathan Mueke, Principal Secretary, State Department for Livestock Development, Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, on behalf of Hon. Mithika Linturi, the Cabinet Secretary. The African Agricultural Transformation Initiative (AATI) was represented by Mr. Bashir Conde, Deputy Director.

As part of a Panel discussion, Mr. Conde’s focused on AATI’s support towards setting up a Climate Smart Agriculture Hub (CSA-Hub), to be anchored within the Climate Change Unit of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development. The hub ultimately bridges the gap between the Kenya Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) Strategy and its implementation. The CSA-Hub will strive to ensure a durable climate lens to Kenya’s agriculture transformation efforts by strengthening local delivery systems at all levels.

Other panel members included: Eng. Richard Kanui, Engineering Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development; Mr. Peter Kuria, Africa Conservation Tillage Network (ACTN); Ms. Ivy Kinyua, Research Associate, ABC-CIAT; Ms. Faith Ngige Coordinator, Climate Business Information Network- Kenya and Mr. Armin Kloeckner, Programme Director, GIZ. The panel discussion was moderated by Ms. Lydia Kimani, Executive Director, Agribusiness for African Markets.

Panellists called for more concrete action on climate issues with robust impact as well as enhanced and concrete partnerships. They also noted that Kenya has a lot of policies and strategies that need to be translated into impact, therefore the CSA-hub would be of utmost importance.