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 <br>By Nita Bhalla<br>
 <br>KITUI, Kenya, June 6 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - [Kenyan farmer](https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/51278-86) Abel Mutie Mathoka believed it should be a joke when he was told he might irrigate his drought-hit crops more inexpensively, [cleanly](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html) and efficiently using a pump fuelled by cotton waste.<br>
 <br>"Who could believe it's possible to make a fuel much better than diesel from cotton seeds? I didn't!" laughed Mathoka, bending down to [examine](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html) the watermelons on his 10-acre (four-hectare) [shared plot](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy) in Ituri village in [Kenya's southeast](https://www.intelligentinvestor.com.au/shares/asx-mbt/mission-newenergy-limited/share-price) Kitui county.<br>
 <br>"But it works," he said, walking over to a nearby tree and plucking a big green pawpaw. "Irrigation with this biodiesel water pump has actually helped me get higher yields, especially throughout drought durations."<br>
 <br>Mathoka stated his earnings had doubled in the 2 years he has actually been pumping water using [biodiesel](https://biodieselmagazine.com/articles/felda-global-buys-missions-kuantan-port-plant-for-11-5-million-9053), which is both more effective and 20 shillings ($0.20) per litre less expensive than regular diesel.<br>
 <br>The biodiesel he is utilizing is not just good news for him - it is likewise good news for the world.<br>
 <br>Unlike most biofuels, which are derived from crops such as maize, sugarcane, soybean, rapeseed and [jatropha](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy), it is made from a by-product of the cotton-making procedure.<br>
 <br>That implies that along with being cleaner and cheaper than [regular](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) fuel, it is more sustainable than other biofuels since no additional land is needed to produce it.<br>
 <br>From Brazil to Indonesia, the rush to cultivate [biofuel](https://www.pinterest.com.au/missionnewenergy/) crops has driven forest communities off their land and pushed farmers to switch from crops-for-food to more rewarding crops-for-fuel - worsening food scarcities.<br>
 <br>"Our biodiesel comes from squashing cotton seeds left over as waste after ginning - the process of separating the seeds from raw cotton," stated Taher Zavery, managing director of Zaynagro Industries Ltd, the Kitui-based company producing the biodiesel.<br>
 <br>"We started producing and utilizing it to power our cotton ginning factory in 2011. With increased production, we now use it for our trucks, sell it to the United Nations to run some of their buses - and likewise to regional farmers for watering."<br>
 <br>More than 1,200 farmers in Kitui have up until now bought biodiesel pumps for watering as part of an effort released by Zaynagro in 2015, stated Zavery.<br>
 <br>DRY RIVER BEDS<br>
 <br>Climate change is taking a toll throughout [east Africa](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html) and progressively erratic weather is ending up being commonplace in nations such as Kenya, Somalia, Uganda and Ethiopia, resulting in lower rains.<br>
 <br>The repeating droughts are [damaging crops](https://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/ASX:MBT/Mission-NewEnergy-Ltd) and pastures and are starving animals - pushing countless individuals in the Horn of Africa to the brink of severe cravings.<br>
 <br>The number of Kenyans in requirement of food aid in March rose by practically 70 percent over a duration of eight months to 1.1 million, mainly due to bad rains, according to government figures.<br>
 <br>With practically half Kenya's 47 counties stated to have a major lack of rain, humanitarian firms are alerting of increased cravings in the months ahead.<br>
 <br>"Only light rainfall is anticipated through June ... and this is not anticipated to minimize drought in affected locations of Kenya and Somalia," stated the Famine Early Warning Systems Network in its latest report.<br>
 <br>"Well below-average crop production, bad livestock body conditions, and increased local food prices are expected, which will decrease poor households' access to food."<br>
 <br>In Kitui's Kyuso location, the indications are already apparent.<br>
 <br>Rivers, [water pans](https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/MNELF:US) and dams are drying up as an outcome of the prolonged drought.<br>
 <br>Villagers suffer trekking longer ranges - often more than 10 km (6 miles) with their donkeys packed with empty jerry cans searching for water.<br>
 <br>Small-scale farmers, most of whom are dependent on rain-fed agriculture, discuss strategies to sell their goats to make ends satisfy if the harvest is poor.<br>
 <br>BATTLING DROUGHT WITH BIODIESEL<br>
 <br>But not all Kitui's farmers are stressed.<br>
 <br>A little however growing number are shedding their burden of [reliance](https://www.intelligentinvestor.com.au/shares/asx-mbt/mission-newenergy-limited/share-price) on the weather - and buying irrigation systems powered by Zaynagro's cotton seed [biodiesel](https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-178469/company/) through a pay-as-you-go plan released more than three years back.<br>
 <br>Neighbouring farmers unite to invest in the watering system - which includes the biodiesel pump, 12 metres of pipes and 10 litres of biodiesel - at costs starting from 32,000 shillings, depending on the size of the pump.<br>
 <br>The farmers make an initial payment, then pay interest-free month-to-month instalments up until the overall is settled. They buy the biodiesel to run the pumps from  at 80 shillings a litre.<br>
 <br>Farmer Alex Babu Kitheka, 39, stated the [biodiesel](https://biodieselmagazine.com/articles/felda-global-buys-missions-kuantan-port-plant-for-11-5-million-9053) pump enabled him to irrigate a larger part of his one-acre plot, where he grows a variety of vegetables including maize, tomatoes, spinach and sweet potatoes.<br>
 <br>"With a diesel pump, maize yields were lower and I would get 15,000 shillings in three months. With the biodiesel pump, I can earn 45,000 shillings," said Alex Babu Kitheka, standing near his plot in Ilangilo village, 40 km (25 miles) from Kitui town.<br>
 <br>[CIRCULAR](https://www.abnnewswire.net/companies/en/31347/%E0%B8%9A%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%97-Mission-NewEnergy-%E0%B8%88%E0%B8%B3%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%94.html/4) ECONOMY<br>
 <br>Other farmers indicate the scheme as a major benefit in helping enhance their output.<br>
 <br>"The instalment scheme is good. Most farmers don't have the cash and can not quickly get a loan to buy a pump like this," said [Maurice Kitheka](https://www.abnnewswire.net/companies/en/31347/%E0%B8%9A%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%97-Mission-NewEnergy-%E0%B8%88%E0%B8%B3%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%94.html/4) Munyoki, 41, as he stood next to his blue biodiesel pump.<br>
 <br>"Having a scheme like this assists us a lot. Our yields are excellent which suggests we can settle the cost of the pump slowly in small quantities, and have money left over to pay the school fees."<br>
 <br>[Zaynagro's initiative](https://www.abnnewswire.net/companies/en/31347/%E0%B8%9A%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%97-Mission-NewEnergy-%E0%B8%88%E0%B8%B3%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%94.html/4) is still in its early phases, with few farmers having actually paid back the complete expense of the pumps.<br>
 <br>But such [biofuel](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) plans are appealing because they create a circular economy by turning waste to [biofuel](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608) for revenue, said Sanjoy Sanyal, senior associate for Clean Energy Finance at the World Resources Institute.<br>
 <br>The simpleness of the model - user friendly, robust innovation, assured supply of [biodiesel](https://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/ASX:MBT/Mission-NewEnergy-Ltd) combined with a pay-as-you-go scheme - might help electrify rural Africa, he said.<br>
 <br>"There is a mosaic of sustainable energy alternatives worldwide. The essential concern is checking concepts and methods in a collective style," stated Sanyal.<br>
 <br>"Other cotton ginning factories in the area should attempt and gain from this experiment. Banks must begin exploring with loans to groups of farmers. International donors and investors need to support experimentation."<br>
 <br>($1 = 101.3000 Kenyan shillings) (Reporting by Nita Bhalla @nitabhalla, Editing by Claire Cozens. Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's and LGBT+ rights, human trafficking, home rights and environment modification. Visit http://news.trust.org)<br>