COSDEP BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Community Sustainable Development Empowerment Programme (COSDEP) is a registered non-governmental organization (NGO) that focuses on ensuring continued learning and practice of agro ecological Agriculture in rural communities for improved food and dietary conditions. Community development programmes in other fields have also been keen in our transformation mission of the livelihoods of the vulnerable communities which has contributed to our engagement in varied cross cutting issues within our programmes.
The organization was founded in 2001 as a community based organization in Kiambu and became an NGO in 2004 covering Kiambu and Murang’a Counties. We have also carried out consultancy work in other counties including Busia, Narok, Kirinyaga and Nyeri. The organization’s office is situated in Gachie shopping center, Kihara ward in Kiambu County, a few kilometers from the city of Nairobi and also has a demonstration farm in Kagongo village in Ndenderu ward still within Kiambu County. Besides training, we also offer post training services to the trained farmers through constant follow ups, information sharing and networking. Again, we engage in appropriate technology, value addition to farm produce, agro forestry and water harvesting all aimed at enhancing sustainable development.
So far over 35, 000 farmers have been reached and trained with 60% of the number being very active in agro ecological agriculture. Two thirds of this number has also been involved in exchange visits as away of promoting knowledge and information exchange among them.
Mission Statement
We are committed to promote sustainable development initiatives among the poor small-scale farmers in Central and western regions of Kenya through participatory practices.
Vision Statement
COSDEP envisions a just, self-reliant community of men and women who are social-economic and environmentally conscious and sustainable.
Community Sustainable Development Empowerment Programme (COSDEP) main focus areas include; Promoting Agro Ecological Agriculture for food production, Education, Environment Conservation, Health Improvement and Income Generation purposes in the rural communities.
Our Long-Term Goal is to build the communities’ capacity to secure their own food, nutrition and income security at the house hold level.
Our overall Purpose:
To ensure continued learning, practice and spread of Ecological farming in rural communities for healthy living, promote school based gardening activities, entrepreneurship and other cross cutting interventions.
Our Strategic Objectives
To equip the smallholder farming community including young farmers with the ability to be self-reliant and food/ nutrition secured in an ecologically sound way, and where possible to produce surplus and add value for effective marketing.
To ensure that continuity of ecological farming practice and information spread through farmer to farmer learning and interaction is happening extensively in all communities where COSDEP works.
To complement and actively participate in appropriate networks for information exchange and advocacy at all level.
To mentor young up-coming school leavers and professionals on the need to be independent and uphold good morals.
To train the community in small scale entrepreneurship for wealth creation/self-reliance.
To establish COSDEP as a relevant, well organized, motivated and adequately resourced organization doing high quality work.