Kenyan Startup, Sunculture is Developing Solar-Powered Water Pumps and Irrigation Solutions for Subsistence Farmers in Kenya
In Kenya, most subsistence farmers are looking to solar-powered irrigation systems to aid their thirsty crops due to rain scarcity.
Until now, in the country where 80 percent of the land faces low and unpredictable rainfall, many farmers have chosen to eliminate rain-fed agriculture from their crop rotations, others irrigate their lands by flooding from a nearby river or lake which most times causes erosion and deplete soil nutrients.
However, Sunculture now seeks to transform the fortune of subsistence farmers in these arid areas. The startup was founded by Charles Nichols and Samir Ibrahim in 2012, to make smallholder farming households more productive in an affordable and environmentally-friendly way by selling them affordable solar-powered water pumps and customized irrigation systems bundled with ongoing support and financing.
They are transforming agriculture with the AgroSolar Irrigation kit for farmers in Kenya, this kit is an entirely solar-powered drip irrigation system that combines pumping technology with high-efficiency drip irrigation and includes everything a farmer needs to grow more while spending less, in a sustainable and energy-efficient way.
Sunculture has developed a novel and unique product that simplifies mobile farming and increases crop yields.
They have become a “one-stop shop” for Kenyan farmers and continue to propagate solar powered irrigation in Africa, designing, making and selling solar powered irrigation systems to East African farmers as well as providing maintenance support and fostering economic developments in African countries.
