Deliberating Policy Coherence in Kenya’s Agricultural Input Systems: The Case of Biofertilizers
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International Water Management Institute
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Kenya’s agricultural input system remains heavily skewed toward chemical fertilizers, despite growing evidence of their long-term harm to soil and water quality. Biofertilizers—organic inputs that enhance nutrient uptake, water retention, and restore soil structure—are increasingly recognized in national policies, including the National Soil Fertility Management Policy (2023), Climate-Smart Agriculture Strategy (2017–2026), and Agricultural Sector Growth and Transformation Strategy (2019–2029). However, this recognition has not translated into regulatory frameworks, public financing, or inclusion in subsidy and distribution systems.
This paper uses a political economy and policy coherence lens to examine how biofertilizers are positioned within Kenya’s agricultural input system, focusing on the regulatory, financial, and institutional conditions shaping their uptake and scaling. Drawing on policy analysis, stakeholder mapping, and interviews with Kenyan biofertilizer enterprises, it identifies three core constraints: institutional fragmentation across government agencies responsible for agriculture, environment, and water; misalignment between national policy ambitions and county-level implementation capacity; and inconsistencies in policies that promote sustainable inputs while continuing to fund chemical fertilizers. The findings indicate that the absence of a dedicated regulatory framework—alongside fertilizer subsidies, weak coordination, and limited capacity—has created a system in which biofertilizers lack formal recognition and structured pathways for quality assurance, distribution, and scaled use. Regulatory agencies lack standards for certification and monitoring, excluding producers from formal markets and public programs. County governments face capacity and financing constraints. The paper recommends establishing a national regulatory framework, piloting inclusion in subsidy systems, strengthening extension services, and improving coordination to align input systems with climate and sustainability goals.
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farm inputs, policy coherence, biofertilizers, reforms, frameworks