A Mission for Environmental Restoration and Livelihood Resilience

In the heart of Kitise, Miambani village, Makueni County-a region grappling with deforestation, erratic rainfall and scarce resources such as food and water, lives 40-year-old Mercy Mwangangi with her husband and three children. Once a secretary, Mercy is now a dedicated farmer, striving to uplift her family’s status and that of her community through climate mitigation and adaptation.

“I grew up in a village where trees were plentiful, and food and water were in abundance,” Mercy recalls. “When I moved here, I was shocked by how much the environment had been destroyed. Charcoal burning was rampant, food had to be bought and fetching water required long journeys. I felt that I needed to change this to provide a better lifestyle for my family, similar to what I had growing up.”

Mercy is a lead farmer practicing the Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR) approach, trained through World Vision’s Greater Regeneration for Evergreen Environment (GREEN) Project. In less than a year, she had experienced remarkable benefits from this simple, low-cost approach, transforming her once- barren 2.5-acre land allocated for FMNR.

With proper fencing and exclusion of livestock, Mercy has witnessed the regeneration of indigenous tree species and grass. After the training, she pruned the trees, thinned the bushes and added manure to the land enhancing its productivity. 

One significant impact of FMNR has been the elimination of firewood expenses. Mercy now collects firewood from pruned trees on her farm, saving her family at least 1,500 KES ($ 12) every month. As a resource commonly used in her homestead and most rural households in Kenya, this alleviated the stress she had of borrowing her husband money to buy firewood.

“I never saw the trees on our farm as a resource for firewood, construction poles, or fencing material,” she says.  “World Vision’s training opened my eyes. Since then, I have not bought firewood or fencing material.”

Mercy says they had previously spent over 700,000 KES ($ 5,421) to fence part of their 15-acre land, costs they could have avoided had they known of FMNR earlier. She recently constructed a shed for her 47 goats using posts from her farm, saving over 40,000 KES ($ 310).

“I would have spent 50,000 KES to make the goats’ shed buying 25 poles that cost 300 KES each among other materials. Instead, I only spent 1,500 KES catering for labour,” Mercy explains, “Now, I sell surplus poles, boosting our household income.”

Mercy pivoted to livestock farming after repeatedly getting low crop yields due to unpredictable weather patterns. She strategically plants and stores fodder for the dry season, ensuring her animals remain healthy and market-ready. Her well-fed goats and cattle fetch high prices, providing a stable income stream.

Each school term (3 terms), Mercy sells two bulls to a nearby school, earning between 540,000 to 600,000 KES ($ 4,184 to 4,649) annually. This income supports her children’s education and other household needs. Her family also enjoys healthy fresh milk daily from their cattle.

Practicing FMNR has reshaped Mercy’s perspective on environmental conservation, reduced her dependency on her husband, enhanced her family’s well-being and alleviated financial stress. She now spends more time with her family and finds fulfillment in being available for her children, especially to support them with schoolwork.

Mercy was recently trained on World Vision’s Savings for Transformation (S4T) model and has already mobilized 25 community members to form a savings and loan group to improve their incomes. 

"World Vision has brought light into our lives," she says. "My farm is greener, my family is healthier and happier, and I no longer stress about firewood or pasture. FMNR has changed our lives, and I am determined to share this knowledge with others."

Mercy envisions to increase her FMNR acreage to restore more degraded land, hoping to create a greener, healthier Kitise, eradicate poverty and build climate resilience within her community.

The GREEN Project, funded by the Australian NGO Cooperation Program (ANCP), aims to restore 225,000 hectares of degraded land across Kajiado, Narok and Makueni counties in Kenya by 2028. Through this initiative, 55,000 agro-pastoral farming households trained on FMNR will become more resilient to the impacts of climate change.

By Hellen Owuor, Communications Specialist, World Vision Kenya