Kenya Gatsby Trust has and continues to support different producers both in the agricultural and natural resource based enterprises in Kenya either in its own capacity or in partnership with various other stakeholder organizations and government departments to access profitable and sustainable markets for their products. KGT’s Business Development Services (BDS) Department facilitates increased market access for locally produced and processed MSE products to local, regional and international markets. Specific interventions are targeted at identified leverage points within different value chains to facilitate market penetration and subsequent sustainability. This is achieved through 4 key strategic service areas namely:

Trade Facilitation
Through which we pursue specific elements connected with the simplification and harmonization of trade procedures for MSEs. Key objective and intervention areas include;

Agro Processing and Value Addition –
This covers the wider area of agro processing and entails fruit and vegetable drying and pulping, packaging, product testing, standardisation and certification
Product design and development - encompassing; Product trend Research, Digital imaging, Design support, Prototyping, Prototype/Product Testing, development of product specification manuals,
Product Branding and development of Design Associates

Business Linkages -
Aimed at ensuring MSEs enter and interact meaningfully and profitably with buyers in the market place. Key areas of intervention include, Brokerage services, Buyer/seller matchmaking, Trade fairs, Exhibitions, Market Access information, Knowledge Management, Product Cataloguing, Producer Capacity Building, Direct marketing, Production appraisal/Forecasting and Process control and instrumentation

Development of Producer clusters and clubs
This entails Organisational Development, facilitation of product consolidation and bulking services, Group sensitisation and mobilisation, Group Dynamics, Business Training, Capacity Building and provision of Business Incubation services

Niche market development
Besides the mainstream markets, KGT works towards linking producers with niche markets including the Fair Trade markets. Key Intervention areas include:

Development of Fair Trade markets -
KGT is a member of the International Federation of Alternative Trade (IFAT) and has in the past, supported promotion of global Fair Trade principles and national and international policy advocacy and lobbying. We have been instrumental in successfully setting up the Kenya Federation of Alternative Trade (KEFAT), whose Secretariat is currently housed in KGT

Social Audits and Accreditation -
KGT works with the Fair Trade Labelling Organisation (FLO), the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) and their affiliates to carry out assessments and social audits on Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) Factories. This has lead to the certification of one of the factories for FLO tea, while the certification process the 7 other factories is still ongoing.

Lobbying for development and application of standards, licensing and certification
KGT lobbies different standard bodies for example the Kenya Bureau of Standards to develop standards and certification criteria suitable for MSEs; and particularly those involved in Agro processing. This also involves working with the Local Government to license MSEs working from their homes – hybrid incubators

Development of Service providers -
The efficiency of extension systems for business development and sustainability cannot be overlooked. KGT facilitates development of alternative service provision modules to suit different sectors. This aims at creating service providers that are more responsive to the needs of MSEs.

Appropriate Technology Development and Transfer
To facilitate the development and use of appropriate technologies, KGT integrates the following objectives;

Technology assessment -
A comprehensive approach to examine the actual or potential need/impact of technology applications on certain sustainability issues and consequences in order to facilitate development and use of technological interventions according to location-specific constraints and objectives.

Sectoral linkages (public and private sector as well as intra-sector linkages) in order to make use of technology assessments and to allow for transfer and appropriate use of technologies for sustainable development. Currently, there are linkages with the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT).

Technology transfer - use of various inter-related components of technology, i.e. "hardware" (materials), "software" (technique, know-how, information), human ability, organizational development and management aspects to ensure technologies are availed and put to productive use by end users

Subcontracting
KGT’s subcontracting strategy entails a mentoring program to enhance technology development and transfer, capacity building, trade linkages and business training for MSEs (Artisans). Artisans are equipped with the business acumen needed to ensure improved livelihood options through artisan mentoring programmes and development of artisan pools, institutions and networks through which interactions between the corporate and the MSEs in subcontracting thrive.