Mary’s New Harvest: How Innovation Is Changing Farming in Embu

Sep 10, 2025 | Eileen Bogweh Nchanji, Lutomia Cosmas, and Victor Nyamolo
Alliance Biodiversity & CIAT
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Mary, a smallholder farmer in Runyenjes, Embu, joined GTSTIB pilots to test new seeds, soil tools, and gender dialogues. Her yields and family nutrition improved, empowering her voice in farm decisions and showing why scaling matters.

When Mary - a smallholder farmer in Runyenjes - first heard about Gender Transformative Socio-Technical Innovation Bundles (GTSTIBs) she wasn’t sure what to expect. Farming has always been tough. The rain was unpredictable, seeds were costly, and others made most decisions about what to plant or sell in her household. 

Through the pilot program, Mary decided to try something new. She planted improved maize and beans together, tested her soil for the first time, and participated in discussions on how men and women can share farming decisions more equally. She also learned simple but powerful nutrition practices that changed how she cooked for her family. 

The impact was immediate. Yields improved. Her children began eating a wider variety of foods. And for the first time, Mary’s voice carried weight in deciding what to plant and how to use the income.