In 2025, Prolinova Kenya, led by Vincent Mariadho, Coordinator, attended two regional events: one with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) grantees in Cape Town and another on biodigital tech in Addis Ababa, organised by Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA). This report summarises both.
PK Coordinates attends UNDP grantees’ partners’ workshop in Cape Town, South Africa (September 9-11, 2025)
The event brought together former and current cohorts of grantees, including Prolinnova Kenya. The event marked the closure of all the cohorts. Participants shared experiences with the UNDP grants administration, the technical support offered, and the milestones individual grantees achieved in their respective projects. The sessions were tailored for participants to hear individual stories, share lessons learnt along the way, and reflect on years of engagement with the UNDP.
Prolinnova Kenya Participates in the Pan-African convening on the future of biodigital technologies-October 2-4, 2025
AFSA, in collaboration with other organisations, with the funding of the 11th Hour Project of the Schmidt Family Foundation, convened a multistakeholder meeting in Addis Ababa in October. The meeting brought together a cross-sector group of participants, African civil society groups, social movements, leaders and allies, and African open-source technology developers, all working for the struggle for food sovereignty and Agroecology in Africa, each contributing diverse expertise, experience, and perspectives. The discussions in the three-day meeting focused on relationship building and establishment of meaningful connections; it addressed critical questions about the future of biodigital technologies emerging in Africa.
Five innovators from Prolinnova Kenya-Joe Ouko (Nyando LMSP), Milliane Aloo and Wilfred Owala (both from Busia LMSP), Charles Ang’ienda (Kisumu LMSP) and Charity Ndivo (Makueni LMSP) had the opportunity to showcase their local innovations. Vincent Mariadho, the Prolinnova Kenya Country Coordinator, led a session on Grassroots Tech Innovations: Stories of Local Tools Empowering Communities, during which he gave a brief overview of Prolinnova and the PID approach, setting the stage for a discussion that drew on Prolinnova Kenya’s experience with local innovation processes. The innovators contributed to the session by sharing their experiences with local innovations and joint experimentation exercises. Chris Macoloo, a member of the PK NSC, also attended the event, drawing further insight into the discussion and enriching it with his vast experience with the PID approach and general Prolinnova work.
Conclusion.
Participation in these two regional-level events helped to raise the profile of not only Prolinnova Kenya but the network in terms of its PID approach. It also helped to deepen learning across networks and showcase the value of grassroots innovation within wider African discussions on food sovereignty, agroecology, and emerging technologies.
Report by Vincent Mariadho, Country Coordinator, Prolinnova Kenya