By: Mamajah Jalloh
A poultry farmer in Kono District, Madam Sitta Kaikai, has expanded her business from 1,000 to 3,000 birds, creating employment opportunities for local youths and supporting agricultural development in her community.
Kaikai’s passion for agriculture is driven by her desire to contribute to food security, improve livelihoods and make a meaningful difference in the lives of people in her community.
“Whenever I came home for holidays, I enjoyed feeding people, but deep down, I felt that was not enough,” she said.
Her desire to make a greater impact intensified in 2022, when the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted livelihoods across Sierra Leone. She began reflecting on how she could contribute more directly to the wellbeing of people in her home community.
“My community needed me now more than ever. So, I decided to come home and uplift them through agriculture,” she explained.
Using her personal savings, Sitta started poultry farming with 1,000 birds. She also mobilized women into farmer groups to cultivate groundnuts and maize. However, limited agricultural knowledge, inadequate resources and low production levels posed challenges to the expansion of their activities and their ability to generate sustainable income.
In addition to poultry farming, she ventured into small-scale rice production, motivated by her desire to promote locally produced food, particularly rice, which is Sierra Leone’s staple food.
“I started rice production because rice is our staple food, and I wanted my people to be eating locally produced rice,” she said.
Following the COVID-19 crisis, Sitta connected with the Food System Resilience Programme (FSRP), through which she received support from the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security. The assistance included seeds, fertilizer and agricultural machinery to strengthen her farming activities.
“This really boosted me. During COVID-19, border restrictions made it difficult to access seeds and fertilizer. The support came at a time when we needed it most,” she recalled.
For Sitta, agriculture goes beyond business. It is a commitment to ensuring that families have access to nutritious food while creating opportunities for income generation and improved livelihoods.
Her efforts have yielded significant results, with her poultry business growing from 1,000 to 3,000 birds and providing employment for members of the local community.
In 2025, she was among 62 agripreneurs selected to benefit from an FSRP matching grant valued at approximately US$150,000. The grant is supporting her ambition to expand her poultry business, with a target of increasing production capacity to 20,000 birds.
Through the support, she has completed poultry structures, purchased machinery for feed production and acquired tractors to cultivate maize for poultry feed.
“I completed the structures, bought machines for poultry feed and bought tractors so that I can grow my own maize. Before now, I barely realized profit because of the cost of feed. But with this support, I have been empowered to provide food, generate income and create jobs for Sierra Leoneans,” she said.
Sitta currently employs about 20 people, mostly young people. Beyond her poultry business, she also supports four farmer groups, each comprising 25 members, by providing seeds and land preparation services to enable them to cultivate maize, rice and vegetables.
With her expanding poultry enterprise and continued support for smallholder farmers, Sitta is contributing to local food production, youth employment and improved livelihoods in Kono District.