KENYA AGRICULTURAL AND LIVESTOCK RESEARCH ORGANISATION

Their core work

KALRO (formerly KARI) is Kenya's national agricultural research body, conducting applied research on crop improvement, pest management, soil health, and farming systems across East Africa. In H2020 projects, they contribute field-level expertise on smallholder farming challenges, particularly push-pull pest control technology and sustainable intensification practices. They serve as a critical on-the-ground partner for validating and scaling agricultural innovations developed through international research consortia, bridging laboratory science with the realities of African farming.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

KALRO's early H2020 involvement (2017) began with broad sustainable agriculture themes through InnovAfrica. From 2020 onward, their focus sharpened significantly in two directions: soil science infrastructure (Soils4Africa with GloSIS, Copernicus, and INSPIRE frameworks) and hands-on farming systems work including push-pull pest management, traditional crop recovery, and value chains. The shift shows a move from general participation in agricultural innovation projects toward more specific, Africa-grounded expertise in pest management and soil data systems.

KALRO is deepening its specialization in scalable pest management (push-pull) and continental soil data infrastructure — two areas where African field expertise is irreplaceable for international consortia.

How they like to work

KALRO joins projects exclusively as a participant, never as coordinator — consistent with their role as an implementing research partner providing field access and local agronomic knowledge. With 65 unique consortium partners across 26 countries from just 4 projects, they operate in large, diverse consortia typical of EU-Africa food security programs. This broad partner network suggests they are a trusted go-to African research organization that multiple European consortium builders independently select.

Despite only 4 projects, KALRO has built connections with 65 partners across 26 countries, reflecting their presence in large multi-country consortia spanning Europe and Africa. Their network is especially strong in the EU-Africa food security research corridor.

What sets them apart

KALRO is one of the few national agricultural research organizations in sub-Saharan Africa with sustained H2020 participation, giving them direct experience with EU research frameworks and reporting requirements. Their specific strength in push-pull technology — a companion cropping method for pest control developed in East Africa — makes them an essential partner for any consortium working on biological pest management or sustainable intensification in tropical agriculture. For European partners, KALRO offers something hard to find elsewhere: a well-established national institution with both the scientific capacity and the farmer networks to validate and scale technologies in real African field conditions.

Highlights from their portfolio

• UPSCALE
  Largest EC contribution (EUR 332,250) and most focused project — dedicated entirely to scaling push-pull technology across East Africa through 2026.
• Soils4Africa
  Continental-scale soil information system project connecting African soil data with European frameworks (Copernicus, INSPIRE, GloSIS) — infrastructure that will outlast the project itself.
• EWA-BELT
  Uniquely bridges East and West African farming knowledge, combining pest management, traditional crops, and value chains in a single integrated approach.