Catalyzing Climate Entrepreneurship in Africa

Before dawn breaks in Mogotio, Baringo County, motorcycles set off along rough village roads to collect milk from hundreds of farmers. This has been the routine at Mogotio Farmers Cooperative Society Ltd for years, where 440 members pool between 6,500 and 8,000 litres of milk daily, despite poor roads and rising fuel costs. The cooperative sells fresh milk and processes yoghurt and sour milk.

Farmers in Kenya’s Great Rift and Western regions continue to face declining soil fertility caused by long-term land degradation, overuse of chemical fertilizers, and limited access to affordable, sustainable soil improvement solutions. These challenges have resulted in reduced crop productivity and increased production costs for smallholder farmers who depend heavily on agriculture for their livelihoods.

At the Sustainable Manufacturing Week Conference held at the Sarit Centre in Nairobi, conversations moved beyond theory and policy statements into something more tangible: how circular economy solutions are already reshaping manufacturing, waste management, and industrial competitiveness in Kenya.