What we grow together counts: Using a tree inventory in planted forest for business planning and development.
The case of Tree Growers Association of Nyandarua (TGAN), Kenya
Wednesday, 20 May 2020 (13hrs -14:30 hrs. CEST/GMT+2)
Background
The Forest and Farm Facility (FFF), together with FAO partners, supports Forest and Farm Producer Organizations (FFPOs) in the development of their businesses. In so doing, it enables smallholders to engage in the business of forest and landscape restoration through family farming. In order to take their businesses to scale, FFPOs need to be able to collect and use information on their products and services. This allows them to develop, plan, market, and implement business models that involve tens, hundreds, or thousands of individual farmers. Moreover, verifiable information on members’ assets and a rational presentation of their businesses are significant barriers in accessing finance so that that business models can be scaled quickly.
Scale and information are particularly important for success in the business of growing and selling trees, which requires large areas to be a profitable endeavor. Kenya is a wood deficit country and farm forestry has been promoted for a long time to meet the growing timber demand and to comply with a constitutional target of 10% national tree cover. Currently, timber from farms accounts for about 40% of the national timber supply. Nyandarua County is one of the leading regions with high coverage of farm forestry. However, there are no national or county level statistics on the farm timber stock that could enable development of an evidence based business plan for farm timber.
In this webinar, we present how the Nyandarua Tree Growers Association (TGAN) in Kenya carried out a detailed tree inventory of trees on their farms, used it to develop a bankable business plan based on the aggregation and sale of wood products, and started engaging with financing institutions. The case of TGAN is of interest to other producer organizations, financial institutions, and other partners. We also present the draft of the tools and processes used with TGAN in the expectation they will be useful in some other locations.
Objectives
- Share the rationale and motivation for the farm tree inventory by TGAN
- Share main results of tree inventory linked to a bankable business plan of TGAN
- Share the methodology for the facilitative support provided by FAO and FFF for the preparation of the bankable business plan
Participants
Forest and Farm Producer Organizations from 10 core FFF countries from Africa, Asia and Latin America; Financing and development partners (Equity Bank, Kuscco, FAO, IIED, IUCN, AGRICORD, Hivos, Tropenbos, TNC African Tree fund, ZANACO, FMO Ghana); FAO staff and partners; government representatives