Learners, teachers graduate from thrive for good organic farming training

A five-day training in Kitale equips students, educators and communities with practical skills in organic farming, nutrition and income generation

By Fridah and Daniel Kipchumba

A total of 103 learners and 14 teachers yesterday completed a five-day organic farming training workshop organised by Thrive for Good – East Africa, gaining practical skills in sustainable food production, soil health, natural medicine and income generation that the institution intends to extend into the wider community.

The training was held at Bikeke Comprehensive School in Trans Nzoia County, where participants drawn from the school’s 4-K Club engaged in both theoretical lessons and hands-on practical sessions designed to equip them with techniques applicable at home, in school gardens and across their communities. The club operated under the guidance of patrons Verah Katikit and Joseph Lumuli, who directed students on how to maximise available local resources for greater agricultural productivity.

Thrive for Good – East Africa, headquartered in Milimani Estate, Kitale and led by chief executive Dr Ambrose Motian, operates across 24 countries. Its mandate centres on empowering communities and institutions with knowledge of organic farming, nutrition, natural medicine and income-generating activities — all using locally available resources rather than expensive external inputs.

The organisation’s team at the workshop included Fride Juma, who oversees human resources, government programmes, communication and field operations; Isaac Kayanda, responsible for programme quality and implementation; Peter Kebaso, the field reporting coordinator for Kenya; and Mohamed Ramadhan, a field staff member and trainer. Juma pledged continued support to the school in achieving its agricultural production goals.

As part of its sustainability strategy, Thrive for Good provides trained participants with basic farming tools and seeds to help them establish and maintain productive gardens following the training period. The approach is deliberate: equipping communities to grow nutritious food using what is already within reach, reducing dependence on costly inputs while strengthening household food security.

Ronald Francis Toili Wamalwa, head teacher at Bikeke Comprehensive School, used the occasion to underscore the broader significance of the programme. He urged both learners and teachers not to keep the knowledge to themselves but to take it back into their homes and communities, arguing that the true measure of the training’s value would be in how widely its lessons were shared and applied.

“The benefits of this programme will be far greater if participants put their learning into practice and share it with others,” Wamalwa said. “Agriculture is central to improving livelihoods and ensuring food security, and that work begins here.”

The sentiment was echoed by two students who addressed the gathering. Samson Happy of Grade 6 and Ian Simiyu of Grade 8 both spoke on the importance of agriculture in school life, reflecting a level of engagement that organisers said was evident throughout the five days of training.

The graduation ceremony, at which participants received certificates marking the completion of the workshop, brought together school leadership, community members and the Thrive for Good team in a demonstration of the collaborative model the organisation promotes — one in which institutions, communities and external partners share responsibility for building lasting agricultural capacity.

The timing of the workshop also carries strategic significance. A delegation of visitors from Canada is scheduled to arrive at Bikeke Comprehensive School on December 17 to assess the agricultural projects currently under way at the institution. The visit is expected to provide an opportunity to showcase what has been achieved and demonstrate how the knowledge gained through the training is already being translated into practical activity on the ground.

For the learners who participated, the workshop represents more than a certificate. It offers a practical foundation for self-reliance at a time when food security remains an urgent concern for many households in Trans Nzoia County and beyond. For the teachers, it provides tools to embed agricultural education more meaningfully into school life rather than treating it as an academic subject disconnected from daily reality.

Thrive for Good – East Africa envisions a world in which communities with limited access to food can grow what they need to feed themselves. Yesterday’s graduation at Bikeke Comprehensive School was one modest but meaningful step towards that goal.

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