Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe has announced that Kenya is set to launch the JobsConnect Compact, making it the first country in Africa to finalise the global framework aimed at creating 6 million new, greener and dignified jobs by 2030.
He made the announcement at Kilimo House during a briefing with the World Bank Regional Office leadership—Dr. Eliot Mghenyi, Ghada Elabed, and James Musinga—and founding members of the MADE Alliance from Mastercard, Equity Group, Microsoft, and the Kenya National Federation of Farmers (KENAFF).
Present were Florence Kariuki, Daniel Huba, Jane Gidali (Mastercard), Magdalene Alukhava (KENAFF), and Priya Chana, Nawa Lubasi, Harold Mate (Equity).
CS Kagwe confirmed that all agricultural digitisation efforts are now consolidated under the Kenya Agriculture Data and Information Centre (KADIC), which will house the full data ecosystem, including KIAMIS.
He also announced that the Agriculture Information and Resource Centre (AIRC) will be moved to KADIC to eliminate data duplication and strengthen real-time linkages between farmers, counties, cooperatives, markets, and processors.
KADIC Director Betty said the Centre will lead the rollout of the Digital Agriculture Roadmap (DAR) to be launched next year.
Juma Salim, Director of Digital at KADIC, emphasized that unifying data from the Ministry’s 31 parastatals will ensure farmers receive timely and actionable information.
The JobsConnect Compact focuses on job creation, food and nutrition security, import substitution, and export growth, including: 5.3 million new and better jobs, reducing food-insecure populations by 10 million, cutting imports by USD 2–3 billion, and increasing agricultural export earnings by USD 5 billion.
CS Kagwe noted that digital agriculture is central to transforming farmer incomes and attracting youth into a modern, tech-driven sector.
He highlighted a major human resource transition—30% of departmental heads due to retire, 20% already retired, and over half the workforce set to exit within two years—calling it an opportunity to rebuild capacity through Agri-Connect, agri-preneur training, Kenya Agriculture College, and digitised soil testing.
Mastercard presented its digital payment infrastructure and noted that only 2% of farmer transactions currently pass through M-Pesa, limiting financial visibility.
Equity Bank reaffirmed agriculture as a core pillar, backing efforts to raise yields, savings, and long-term farmer wealth.
CS Kagwe stressed that agriculture cannot operate under 18–19% commercial interest rates, advocating for 5% guaranteed agricultural credit as the sustainable option. He cited government investments—including the KSh 61 billion fertilizer subsidy and KSh 17 billion credit facility—as part of efforts to stabilize production and lower input costs.
