Call for Agri Waste Innovation
Agricultural waste remains both a persistent challenge and a missed opportunity across Kenya. While agriculture drives the national economy and sustains millions of livelihoods, significant volumes of crop residues and by-products continue to be unmanaged or underutilized. Farmers and market actors often resort to burning or dumping these materials, resulting in soil degradation, greenhouse gas emissions, and broader environmental and public health risks.
To address these challenges, the International Centre for Humanitarian Affairs (ICHA) is launching a three-year incubation and acceleration program through its Innovation Labs—I.O.Me 254 as the main implementer. Supported by the Airbus Foundation, this initiative focuses on transforming agricultural waste into valuable products, reducing environmental impact while creating pathways for green jobs, entrepreneurship, and strengthening rural economies.
The program targets scalable, youth- and women-led projects that convert crop residues like maize stalks, rice husks, sugarcane bagasse, banana, fish waste, etc into commercial products. The targeted Counties are- Meru, Kakamega, Homabay and Kericho I.O.Me 254 provides specialized technical incubation support, market access guidance, investment readiness training, and ecosystem linkages to ensure viable enterprise development.
This initiative addresses Kenya's agricultural waste management crisis while advancing circular economy principles. It supports national green growth priorities and strengthens women and youth participation in sustainable innovation, positioning I.O.Me 254 as the lead platform for transformative agri-waste solutions.
Applications are now open for Agri-Waste Innovators with prototypes ready to scale Kenya's agricultural landscape through this specialized incubation expertise.
Submit by 15th of February 2026