The Tech Awards Laureate Update
KickStart: Turning Subsistence Farms into Profitable Businesses
Most poverty-level subsistence farmers in sub-Saharan Africa haul
water from their wells to their fields by hand because they do not have the electricity to run pumps, or the funds for expensive
gasoline, wind, or solar-powered irrigation systems. The founders of KickStart (formerly known as ApproTEC) realized that effective
irrigation systems that do not require power generators would make it possible for farming families to multiply their crop yields
and create profitable agricultural enterprises. So they invented an affordable water pump that can be run on human power.
In 2002, KickStart received the Accenture Economic Development Award for their durable, low-cost water pump that farmers operate
with a simple stair-step mechanism. The pump has helped more than 45,000 families turn their farms into businesses, and it has
lifted 225,000 people out of poverty. Since winning the Award, KickStart has expanded its reach in Kenya and Tanzania, launched
a program in Mali, and exported their pumps to farmers in more than 20 countries. Pump users generate over $45 million in new
profits and wages each year. The new revenue is equivalent to more than 0.5% of Kenya's GDP and 0.2% of Tanzania's GDP.
KickStart's core focus is on the subsistence farmers of Sub Saharan Africa concentrated in countries like Mali, Kenya, and Tanzania. KickStart also markets and distributes its irrigation products to underdeveloped agricultural regions worldwide through other NGOs.
KickStart focuses its efforts on Africa because Africa relies heavily on agriculture to support its economy and people. Agriculture provides the majority of the GDP and the majority of employment for most countries in the region. Farmers do not have the money to buy farm equipment needed to support more than their own family's needs. One of the major problems is irrigation, because farmers must limit how much they plant by the amount of water they can supply to their crops. Thus, irrigation is a huge limiting factor for farmers of Africa, and for the economy and wellbeing of the African continent as a whole.
Though methods of irrigation already exist which utilize solar, gas, and electric power, accessing and using these types of energy is expensive and limited. Knowing Africa's need for irrigation, and the immense entrepreneurial spirit among the farmers in Africa, KickStart saw a market for irrigation technology. KickStart saw that it could be the bridge to achieving economic prosperity for individual farmers and their communities. As a result, the KickStart team invented a water irrigation pump named the "MoneyMaker Pump," a mechanical device driven by human-power. Thus, this device allows subsistence farmers to become commercial farmers.
Since the organization started in 1991, it has helped over 45,000 families start businesses which in turn have helped 225,000 people to move out of poverty. Also, the pumps sold last year generated over $10 million in new profits and wages for the users of the pumps.
To Francis Kimotho and Milka Waithira, who are husband and wife farmers in Kenya, the KickStart pump has transformed their farm and their community. Originally they had been contracted by an exporter from the UK to plant and grow French beans, in which the exporter would provide the seed and supplies, and at harvest time, the cost of supplies would be deducted from what they returned. The family did this for about eight years but could only plant about three pounds of the seeds they received because they could not irrigate any more using their bucket-irrigation method.
Two years ago, however, the exporter offered them the opportunity to use KickStart's Super MoneyMaker Pump to aid them with their irrigation. Milka, an optimist, who was ready to embrace the possibility of economic self-sufficiency, agreed and was pleasantly surprised by the performance of the pump. Before they started using the pump, the family made less than $270 a year from their farm. After using the pump they made over $1,450 a year and additionally were able to grow maize and kale for themselves. With their new money they improved their lifestyle by purchasing new metal roofing for the heavy African rains and ensuring their children receive a good education. They were also able to create jobs for their community by hiring locals to help them weed and harvest their crops.
As a result of the impact that KickStart has made to the economy of Africa, The Tech Museum of Innovation honored KickStart with the 2002 Accenture Economic Development Award and a cash prize. KickStart explained the award has helped them increase their publicity, open doors to new donors, and link them to great new friends who have a common interest in using technology to better our world.
With the cash prize, KickStart was able to pull 250 additional families out of poverty, and make the switch from relying mainly on government funding to private funding. This switch has allowed them to become a more sustainable and innovative organization. KickStart also has been able expand its markets, exporting its pumps to over 20 different countries around the world, and has developed a new line of products, including the "hip pump" and "deep-lift" pump. Their publicity has also increased, as they were featured on "The New Heroes," PBS series, and their Deep Lift Pump was selected as a finalist for the INDEX Awards for Design in Denmark.
Within the next three years, KickStart plans to raise $20 million dollars in funding, and aid 80,000 more farming businesses in becoming profitable, thereby helping 400,000 more people out of poverty. It also plans on increasing its sales in Kenya and Tanzania so that its operations in those countries become self-sustaining. They will refine their outreach and promotional efforts, launch new pump models, and expand into new countries.
KickStart has a lot of work ahead of them, but the leaders of KickStart say it's worth the money and time because "KickStart can lift a person out of poverty for $40. That seems like a pretty good return on investment."
