Food Security

Under this special programme, hbs Nairobi works towards realizing the Right to Food in Kenya, which is provided for in Article 43 of the Constitution: “Every person has the right to be free from hunger, and to have adequate food of acceptable quality.” Our activities aim to influence the political approach to food security and target avenues related to policy development and implementation at national and county-level. Additionally, the initiative relies on creative communications and an influencer-led campaign to promote innovative solutions to the problem of chronic food insecurity. We engage with mainstream and alternative media to shift the emphasis of the debate on hunger and unaffordable or inadequate food to a discussion about food rights.

Critique of the Green Economy - Toward Social and Environmental Equity

The idea of growth as the way to end poverty and escape economic and financial crisis remains largely undisputed and is currently reflected in the concept of the green economy. But not everything that is “green” and efficient is also environmentally sustainable and socially equitable. This essay outlines a policy of less, of wealth in moderation, to enable the Earth’s resources to make a life of dignity and without need possible for all.

Irrigation Agriculture in Kenya - Impact of the Economic Stimulus Programme and Long-term Prospects for Food Security in an Era of Climate Change

The study analysed the irrigation expansion strategy as a measure of increasing food security and securing livelihoods in Kenya, as well as its role as a measure to climate change adaptation in relation to other measures e.g. selection of crop varietal suitability, environmental conservation through afforestation, agro forestry and land use management and practices.

All publications on Food rights

Our programs

Agroecology

Food security

Cover of the publication Pesticide Residues in Selected Vegetables from Kenyan Markets

Pesticide Residue Levels in Selected Fresh Vegetables Delivered in Markets in Kenya

How safe is the food on our plates? Research by the Kenya Organic Agriculture Network (KOAN), in partnership with the University of Nairobi, Route to Food Initiative, a programme of Heinrich Böll Foundation, and the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation, examined pesticide residues in vegetables commonly consumed in Kenya and offers fresh evidence on the state of food safety and practical household methods that can help reduce pesticide residues before consumption.

Pesticides

Cha Kula Issue 7 | Rotten

Publication

Inspired by the Netflix documentary Rotten, this issue of Cha Kula by the Route to Food Initiative, highlights the absurdities in our food systems in Kenya, both historically and in the contemporary moment. Cha Kula is a bi-annual publication that gives prominence to food as a political issue in Kenya. It calls into question the power dynamics that dominate our food system, which determines who eats, what they eat and who goes hungry.

Route to Food Initiative

Gender and food systems

Power Poverty Hunger - Food System Facts 2021

New Publication

It is possible to create sustainable, just and healthy food systems. For this to happen, it is key to strengthen political structures that truly focus on the right to food, on healthy nutrition, and on protecting biodiversity and the climate.

Heinrich Böll Foundation , MG Research