The International Water Management Institute (IWMI) and the Strathmore University Energy Research Centre (SERC) entered into partnership on April 24 to develop and deliver training programs on the application of solar technologies in agriculture across Kenya and Ethiopia. The partnership brings together IWMI’s research-for-development expertise and its strong links with farmers, private-sector actors and policymakers across East Africa with SERC’s experience in energy research, professional training and project development. Together, the institutions aim to strengthen human and institutional capacities needed to expand the responsible and sustainable use of solar energy in agriculture.
The agreement is part of the Solar Energy for Agricultural Resilience (SoLAR) project, led by IWMI and supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC). The SoLAR project seeks to unlock investments and create an enabling environment for scaling solar energy solutions for agriculture. Building on the project’s first phase implemented in Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Pakistan, SoLAR II has expanded to East Africa, with activities in Ethiopia and Kenya.
“The transition to solar-powered agriculture requires more than access to technology; it requires people and institutions with the capacity to use, manage and promote these solutions effectively. This collaboration will help equip key stakeholders with the skills needed to drive adoption, improve agricultural productivity and build resilience in rural communities,” said Josey Kamanda, an innovation scaling researcher at IWMI and the Kenya country lead for the SoLAR project.
Agriculture remains a key pillar of the economies of both Ethiopia and Kenya, but production is constrained by frequent droughts coupled with limited access to energy. Kenya is leveraging solar irrigation to strengthen water governance and support rural economic development, while in Ethiopia, solar-powered irrigation is increasingly viewed as a promising pathway for enhancing rural livelihoods. In both countries, SoLAR complements ongoing national efforts to expand access to clean, reliable and sustainable energy for irrigation and other productive agricultural uses.
Group discussion on capacity-building needs for different stakeholders in solar-powered agriculture.
A comprehensive assessment of capacity gaps in applying solar technologies in agriculture will be conducted in Kenya, using stakeholder consultation workshops and desktop research to identify knowledge gaps and barriers to adoption. Based on this assessment, priority themes for training of different target groups will be identified, including topics such as access to finance that limit women and other vulnerable groups from accessing solar technologies and related opportunities.
Drawing on those findings, SERC and IWMI will co-design a gender-responsive curriculum that blends technical knowledge with practical, hands-on skills for technicians, field officers from private sector and development partners, government extension agents and students in technical and vocational training institutions. The curriculum will be rolled out by Strathmore, covering a range of solar applications in agriculture such as solar irrigation, cold storage, agri-processing and food drying. The content and delivery approaches will be tailored to the different roles, experience levels and educational backgrounds of the target groups.
This emphasis on capacity building is shared by SERC, whose skills development work with trainers, farmers, agribusinesses and policymakers is helping translate national ambitions into practical, on-the-ground adoption. Dr. Churchill Saoke, the director of the Strathmore Energy Research Centre, explains how capacity building is central to scaling solar irrigation sustainably. “By equipping trainers, farmers, agribusinesses, and policymakers with practical skills and knowledge, we can accelerate adoption, strengthen local ownership, and ensure that the benefits of clean irrigation reach communities across Kenya and Ethiopia.”
SERC’s role in the partnership is further strengthened by its membership in Kenya’s SoLAR Country Project Management Committee (CPMC). The committee brings together government, research and private-sector partners to guide project implementation, align activities with national priorities and promote coordination and shared learning. This provides an important platform for ensuring that the training programmes respond to country needs and complement wider efforts to scale solar energy solutions in agriculture.
The agreement also provides a foundation for South-South learning, facilitating knowledge exchange between Kenyan and Ethiopian stakeholders, alongside lessons from the extension agent training conducted in India. These cross-country learnings will contribute to the long-term institutionalization of solar agriculture education within regional training systems.
This article was first published here.