Brighter futures sprout for Kenyan women

Training begins

Last month, Xu and five colleagues arrived in Nairobi to deliver the first training session for local farmers. The course lasted eight days — six days of theory and two days of hands-on practice — all free of charge.

More than 40 participants, most of them women, came from diverse backgrounds. Some were farm owners, some were struggling mushroom growers, and a few were university students with children, eager to learn a marketable skill. But most of the female participants shared one thing in common — they were responsible for supporting children on their own.

"In Kenya, young women often find themselves raising children alone," Xu said. "Almost all of our students had children to feed and no stable income to do it with."

Theory classes were held at the Confucius Institute at the University of Nairobi, which provided its classrooms free of charge. The Chinese experts covered mushroom biology, cultivation techniques, pest control, post-harvest handling, and market access. The practical sessions, conducted at two local farms, were tailored to local conditions, with no sterile lab environments, no imported substrates and no complex equipment. Students worked with local mushroom varieties, using basic tools and locally available materials.

"We wanted the participants to understand that this is not a high-tech technology," Xu said. "It's something they can master and do at home."

One of the first trainees was Angel Mercy, a single mother raising her son alone. Having learned some Chinese, she asked the team to call her "Moli", the Chinese word for jasmine. At the training sessions, she stood out as one of the most attentive learners, meticulously filling a notebook with detailed notes on every step of the cultivation process.

"She was the most dedicated student we had," Xu recalled. "She would arrive early, stay late, and always ask for more details."

Mercy shared with the team her struggles to support her family and her reliance on others just to get by. With the training, she hoped to earn money through mushroom cultivation to provide better food and education for her son. For the first time, she felt confident in her ability to be self-reliant.

Xu said Mercy's story encapsulates the deeper significance of the project.

"It empowers these women, giving them the dignity to support themselves and their children independently," she said. "When they earn their own money, they gain a voice in their families, and some even become leaders in their communities, sharing their knowledge with other women."

Another participant, Jecintah Timpiyian, had also been struggling for years to feed her children and cover basic expenses. Mushroom cultivation finally enabled her to meet these needs.

"I was able to earn something … to pay the school fees that were very hard for me to pay," she said. "Everything has changed."

The Chinese experts also taught them how to manage their work and improve their harvesting practices, Timpiyian said. "They have also connected us with many customers," she added.

For Caroline Wanjiku, a mushroom cultivation worker at a local farm, the training deepened her understanding of the process.

"Mushroom cultivation is a science," she said. "You have to be a professional for this because you have to deal with things like temperatures, humidity, and moisture."

Now, Wanjiku has more faith in the business and wants to encourage other women to try it.

"I would advise them to embrace mushroom cultivation," she said. "Mushrooms have high nutritional value, and they sell well in the market. It's a good business."

Broader vision

The project's progress has been shaped by more than just technical adaptation. The Chinese team discovered that working across cultures requires patience and mutual understanding. For example, the Chinese team was accustomed to working on a tight schedule, while their Kenyan counterparts were more flexible, sometimes taking time off for religious and family events.

"We couldn't just impose our way of working," Xu said. "We had to find a rhythm that worked for both sides."

The deeper challenge, Xu noted, revolved around building trust. "Introducing something new often meets resistance, especially when there are cultural and political differences," she said. "We had to continuously work on building connections and earning their trust."

The project, however, had one crucial advantage: the participants were there voluntarily, driven by their own desire to learn. This motivation, Xu said, provided a solid foundation to build upon.

Chen Tian, the project's other initiator, recalled meeting several female mushroom growers who spoke fluent Chinese, which left a strong impression on her and greatly facilitated communication.

"There were cultural differences, of course," Chen said. "But we approached every interaction with mutual respect, patiently explaining and listening. In our cooperation, mushrooms served as a bridge, and practical cultivation techniques were our common language."

She also observed that the participants' aspirations extended well beyond the training curriculum. Several of them inquired about introducing more mushroom varieties from China. Some were already exploring post-harvest processing and storage methods to extend shelf life and reach more customers.

"Some even asked if they could learn Chinese cooking skills to prepare the mushrooms in Chinese styles," Chen added. "They were thinking beyond cultivation and considering the entire value chain."

The participants' enthusiasm and the tangible results of the first training session caught the attention of Kenyan institutions. On July 11, less than two weeks after the training concluded, Erick Rutto, president of the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, visited Changsha, the capital of Hunan, to review the project's early outcomes and discuss further cooperation with the Chinese team. Discussions included expanding training sessions, reaching more farmers, and building a more structured system for production and market access.

The Chinese team is planning another visit to Kenya in October, but their ambitions extend beyond a single training session. The long-term goal is to establish a local spawn production facility, Xu said, a critical piece of infrastructure that would allow Kenyan farmers to produce their own high-quality starter material instead of relying on imports.

There is also a broader vision for the Mom's Mushroom House brand, which could provide quality assurance and stable market channels for local women producing under its name. If the model proves sustainable, the team believes it could be adapted to other countries with similar conditions.

The current training model is designed to be sustainable and replicable. Former local participants are expected to teach others, creating a system that does not depend on Chinese experts traveling to Kenya every few months.

"We are not going to be here forever," Xu said. "But the knowledge has to stay."

Wang Xiaodong and Sharon Nakola in Nairobi contributed to this story.

Contact the writers at limuyun@chinadaily.com.cn