Partner community members
AGAR
Partnerships, Synergies and Collaborations
Community partners
AGAR
The company has created partnership with players in the gum and resins sector and in the aloe and cosmetics industry for a collaborative market engagement. Partnership with the Laikipia permaculture has resulted to creation of the aloe nursery and improving the products that the groups in Laikipia were formulating, certifying the organic and registering the products with the Ethical Bio Trade. This means that the products will gain the global demand as they are traceable and quality assured.
Currently, we collaborate closely with the County Government of Isiolo, the County Government of Turkana, the County Government of Marsabit and the County Government of Wajir in Kenya. We also collaborate often with institutions such as Kenya Forestry Association (KFS), Kenya Forestry Research Institute (KEFRI), the Gum And Resins Association (GARA) where we are executive committee member ensuring quality standards, National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) and Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS). Over the years we partnered up with NGOs among which CEFA, COOPI, CESVI, World Vision, VSF-G in Kenya, C&D – Africa Mission in Uganda, and from 2019 FAO and WFP among UN agencies.
- Good working relationship with the locals.
- Existing work relationships with ready market players
- Facilitation of education on gums and resins aloe value chain additions
- Provision of harvesting and grading tools for the raw materials.
- Diversified sources of income.
- Power of collaboration - with good working relationships with the locals and county government respectively has enabled us iin partnerships with locals allocation of 100 acres of community land for restoration through aloe plantations and Gums and resins tree species plantantions.
- Because of the capacity building investment that AGAR has put in with our collecting partners and aloe farmes, there has been a big improvement in quantity and quality of the sourced raw materials, showing with good information and improved harvesting techniques the farmers and collectors can do a great job.
- With multiple sources of incoe a household in Kenyan arid areas can be able to adapt to the changes that come with climate change in the events of long droughts and other natural calamities, they can be able to cushion themselves from their hazards through diversified sources of income from harvesting and colectio of aloe and gums and resins.
- With good partners on board from both public and the private sector, there is room for better policies and guidelines to govern this sector of Non Timber Forest Product.