How Can Micro-Level Household Information Make a Difference for Agricultural Policy Making: Selected Examples from the KAMPAP Survey of Smallholder Agriculture and Non Farm Activities for Selected Districts in Kenya

Agriculture forms the foundation of Kenya’s economy. However, the information base on agriculture % including basic indicators on farmers’ input, production, and marketing behavior, household food consumption patterns, etc. % is weak and largely outdated. Agricultural policy is largely made on the basis of conventional wisdom about the way things work. In a dynamic, evolving economy, long-standing perceptions may become increasingly inconsistent with current reality, particularly when the system has been exposed to dramatic changes such as structural adjustment, market liberalization, and the advent of new technology. In such a setting, entrenched perceptions about the way farmers, traders and consumers actually behave may lead to unintended and even counterproductive government policy. This paper aims to demonstrate how monitoring the rural economy through timely, periodic and reasonably representative household surveys can inform debate on existing and emerging policy issues.