In the harsh sunlight of Kiboko, where soil frequently breaks before producing, a subtle change is emerging. Lines of pearl millet extend through experimental fields at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre, their seed heads moving softly in the arid air, representing quiet strength.
“I spend much of my spare time on farming,” Yambu states with calm determination.
Despite teaching daily, his passion, and now his main source of income, comes from the land.
Over two decades, Yambu has operated as a contract farmer with the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation (Kalro), cultivating green grams, cowpeas and sorghum. His 40-acre farm has provided steady income, especially from green grams that bring up to Sh130 per kilogram and produce up to 35 bags each season.
But during this visit to Kiboko, something new captured his attention. “Upon arriving, I was delighted to see multiple crops, particularly pearl millet,” he notes. “I hope to obtain seeds that will bring money into my hands.”
For Yambu, pearl millet represents more than just a crop; it signifies a chance.
Pearl millet is not unfamiliar to Africa. For many generations, it served as a basic food in arid regions. However, with time, it lost importance, replaced by maize and other grains, and complicated by laborious preparation and susceptibility to bird attacks.
Now, facing climate challenges, it is experiencing a resurgence. “Among grains, this stands as one of the most resistant to drought,” explains Dr Lilian Gichuru, a Seed Systems Specialist at CIMMYT. “In this setting, it matures for harvesting in just two and a half to three months.”
That rapid growth and resilience make pearl millet a strong choice in areas with increasingly uncertain rainfall. But this is not the pearl millet of previous times.
In Kiboko, researchers are bringing in hybrid varieties from international partners in India, Brazil and Europe. These are being examined under Kenyan conditions to assess output, suitability and market value.
HYBRID INNOVATIONS
“This marks the beginning of many events highlighting hybrid innovations,” Dr Gichuru states. “We are advancing from conventional open-pollinated kinds to hybrids that can substantially enhance production.”
The objective is evident: quicker outcomes, greater production, and crops capable of managing the challenges of a shifting climate. The field visit to Kiboko served not merely for viewing, but for building relationships.
Scientists from Kalro and CIMMYT proceeded alongside farmers and private seed producers, narrowing the common divide between research and practical use.
“We are uniting various partners to assess these materials,” Dr Gichuru explains. “Additionally, we aim to encourage seed companies to include them in their offerings.”
This is where new ideas meet large-scale implementation. By including private sector participants from the start, CIMMYT intends to speed up the path from experimental areas to farmer lands. Already, approximately five seed companies have expressed interest in joint testing and possible marketing of these varieties.
“This focuses on market-influenced choices,” Dr Gichuru adds. “We don’t wish to advance products that farmers and businesses truly don’t desire.”
For farmers such as Yambu and his colleague Leonard Mbwiko, the importance is profoundly individual. Mbwiko, a former special education instructor who previously taught blind students at Machakos Technical Institute for the Blind, now dedicates his time to farming a 10-acre property in Mtito Andei.
“Braille was my specialty,” he remarks with a smile, recalling his teaching years. Nowadays, his instruments are seeds and soil.
Similar to Yambu, he cultivates green grams and sorghum, selling his harvest through Kalro. His production, approximately 10 bags of green grams and 15 bags of sorghum each season, is limited but dependable.
Yet he also recognizes potential in pearl millet. “I encountered it here,” he shares. “I think it can be cultivated in my region once more.”
PEARL MILLET’S PROMISE
His words convey both optimism and past experience. There existed a period when pearl millet flourished in areas like Mtito Andei. However, its reduction narrates a wider narrative, not merely of farming but of societal transformation.
“Previously, children not in school assisted in defending millet fields by frightening birds,” Mbwiko explains. “Now, with more children attending school, this is no longer feasible.”
The consequence? Farmers progressively left the crop. But new hybrid varieties are altering that situation. “That creates a significant impact,” Mbwiko states.
He is already arranging his next step: contacting Kalro to obtain seeds for cultivation. Moving through the Kiboko fields, the variety is remarkable.
“This field contains 28 pearl millet kinds,” states Molly Okoth, a research associate at CIMMYT. “We are evaluating them for production and characteristics such as head length, dual-purpose application and water efficiency.”
These assessments are not confined to Kenya. Comparable evaluations are continuing throughout East and Southern Africa, in Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe, ensuring that the highest-performing varieties can be extended across regions with similar environments.
The concentration is not only on endurance but also on efficiency. “We want farmers to begin viewing pearl millet as a hybrid crop,” Okoth mentions. “Since these hybrids can generate considerably more than what farmers are presently obtaining.”
Greater production means more nourishment, and more earnings. Pearl millet’s possibilities go beyond the meal.
“It has place in food, in brewing and even in livestock nourishment,” Dr Gichuru explains. “Some varieties are superb for animal feed; you can observe the crop is fully developed, yet the leaves remain green.”
This ‘remaining-green’ quality is especially beneficial for livestock raisers, providing a dual-use solution in areas where food scarcity is frequent.
Despite this, difficulties persist. Preparing millet can be work-intensive, especially regarding threshing. But here as well, new ideas are advancing.
MECHANICAL PROCESSING
“Collaborators in mechanization are creating devices to simplify this work,” Dr Gichuru states. “And with hybrid consistency, mechanical processing becomes more practical.”
In other terms, the crop is progressing, not merely in the field but throughout the whole production line. Back in the fields, Yambu moves deliberately between the sections, hearing scientists’ details, watching, estimating, envisioning and even documenting.
For him, the choice is already forming. “Now I have another element to include in my crops,” he states. “That is pearl millet.” It is a straightforward comment, yet one that represents a far more significant change.
Throughout Kenya’s arid regions, farmers are seeking crops that can manage the realities of climate change while still providing income. Pearl millet, previously disregarded, is appearing as a viable option. However, its achievement will rely on more than just research.
It will necessitate cooperation between researchers, farmers, seed businesses and policy makers. It will also demand investment in seed systems, mechanization and market growth. Most importantly, it will need confidence from farmers open to attempting something novel. At Kiboko, that trust is starting to establish.
As daylight fades and the field visit concludes, the message is evident: the future of farming in Kenya’s drylands may not involve creating new methods but in reviving and rethinking crops that have always existed.
Pearl millet is among them. Time will reveal if it will remain.