My name is Philip Ng’ok, a 32 year old married to Lonah Kenduiwa and together we are blessed with 2 sons aged 7 years and 10 months old. We live in a one roomed house in my parents land in Ngata location, Nakuru town together with my mother, my 2 brothers and my sister within the same compound. I volunteer with a local community based organization as an administrator with youth groups. I am a graduate from Kenyatta University with Bachelor’s degree in education with wide experience in youth leadership and lots of expertise in youth empowerment/development issues having worked with the youth for over 10 years. Being a full time volunteer, I have been forced to engage in small time businesses, and small scale farming due to availability of land belonging to my parents. With an increasing family, I have constantly been forced to incur more costs in sustaining my family and as such I have increased my seriousness in agribusiness where I plant maize (corn), beans to feed my immediate and extended family and managed to buy one cow which provides us with milk.
From the earnings, I can manage to buy basic household equipments as well as ensure a constant supply of foodstuffs and other daily consumables. Though challenging the little income I get can allow me to take care of medication for the family and pay school fees for my eldest son who is in class one. I also pay my higher education loan monthly from the money I make from my businesses.
In my free time, I like reaching out to young people to mentor them, train them on various life issues. I always spend my free time reading and researching on topical issues as well as studying business gaps and opportunities. Above all, I like spending a considerable time in the farm taking care of livestock and farm crops.
Indigenous poultry products i.e. meat and eggs are most recommended because of their nutritious value and many people are in interested in these products thus increasing demand. I live 0.5km from a renowned college known as Rift Valley Institute of Science & Technology with about 10,000 students and approximately 8km from Nakuru Town. This type of poultry breed is best reared in an open range system where they are allowed to move freely thus requiring a large space which makes it difficult for most people to rear them giving me an edge over them. I have decided to venture into an indigenous poultry project to produce meat and eggs in large quantities; i will also hatch eggs for interested farmers. The business will be profitable due to availability of space, feeds and water and proximity to the market since most shops get eggs from very far hence increase in price.
I intend to buy a hatchery which will produce 96 eggs after 21 days I will the rear chicks for eggs production, meat and sale of chicks.
Monthly costs will include drugs and feeds since the housing is already available so are labour costs. The business returns will be sufficient to repay loan as well as increase my income which will sustain my family. Each crate of eggs gives a profit of 2 dollars thus if I sell 2 crates I will have 4 dollars a day totaling to 120 dollars per month, I will also sell 10 birds per month at 60 dollars per month. The business will also take orders from customers who will need chicks for rearing. This will give market to the eggs I produce and thus increasing my profit margin.
Most customers will find it easy to buy fresh eggs from me for consumption or for brooding because they will be guaranteed of quality and availability.
I will use the loan amount to purchase an incubator that will hatch 60 eggs that i will rear the chicks and/or sell the chicks at a profit. this will reduce cost of caring for brooding chicken, increase egg production since the chicken will only produce eggs, reduce the tedious nature of rearing chicks from different chicken hatched at different times and earn me income from selling chicks.