Mbumbuni, September 2025

Ahadi Achievers Empowerment CBO successfully conducted a three-day Mango Training of Trainers at Mbumbuni AIC Church, equipping 32 Community Agricultural Champions (CACs) with modern technologies, innovations, and management practices to boost mango production in Makueni County.

Training Focus

• Best practices in mango nursery establishment, planting, soil fertility, pest and disease management.
• Climate-smart farming systems and gender inclusion in mango value chains.
• Practical field sessions on pruning, top working, orchard hygiene, harvesting, and post-harvest handling.
• Marketing, record-keeping, and gross margin analysis to strengthen farmer profitability.

Key Learnings

• Farmers can significantly increase earnings by adopting terracing, water harvesting basins, and soil testing every three years.
• Proper manure and fertilizer application (2 debes of manure + NPK 17:17:17) enhances tree productivity.
• Integrated Pest Management (IPM) – combining scouting, organic products, biological traps, and chemical control – is essential for sustainable production.
• Champions will recruit 100 farmers each, forming producer marketing groups for training and collective market access.

Recommendations

• Align mango training with production stages.
• Farmer field school approaches and organic pest control demonstrations are recommended.
• A stakeholders’ forum involving farmers, exporters, processors, agro-chemical companies, and county officials is needed to strengthen the mango industry.

This initiative positions Community Agricultural Champions as the backbone of mango transformation in Mbooni Sub-county, ensuring farmers adopt climate-smart practices, reduce losses, and access better markets.