By Nita Bhalla

KITUI, Kenya, June 6 ( Foundation) - Kenyan farmer Abel Mutie Mathoka believed it should be a joke when he was told he could irrigate his drought-hit crops more inexpensively, easily and efficiently using a pump fuelled by cotton waste.

"Who could think it's possible to make a fuel better than diesel from cotton seeds? I didn't!" chuckled Mathoka, crouching down to inspect the watermelons on his 10-acre (four-hectare) shared plot in Ituri town in Kenya's southeast Kitui county.

"But it works," he stated, strolling over to a close-by tree and plucking a big green pawpaw. "Irrigation with this biodiesel water pump has assisted me get greater yields, especially throughout dry spell periods."

Mathoka said his profits had actually doubled in the 2 years he has actually been pumping water utilizing biodiesel, which is both more effective and 20 shillings ($0.20) per litre more affordable than routine diesel.

The biodiesel he is using is not just excellent news for him - it is likewise excellent news for the planet.

Unlike the majority of biofuels, which are originated from crops such as maize, sugarcane, soybean, rapeseed and jatropha, it is made from a byproduct of the cotton-making process.

That implies that as well as being cleaner and less expensive than routine fuel, it is more sustainable than other biofuels because no additional land is needed to produce it.

From Brazil to Indonesia, the rush to cultivate biofuel crops has driven forest communities off their land and pressed farmers to change from crops-for-food to more rewarding crops-for-fuel - intensifying food shortages.

"Our biodiesel comes from crushing cotton seeds left over as waste after ginning - the process of separating the seeds from raw cotton," stated Taher Zavery, handling director of Zaynagro Industries Ltd, the Kitui-based company producing the biodiesel.

"We began producing and utilizing it to power our cotton ginning factory in 2011. With increased production, we now use it for our trucks, offer it to the United Nations to run a few of their buses - and also to regional farmers for irrigation."

More than 1,200 farmers in Kitui have so far bought biodiesel pumps for irrigation as part of an initiative launched by Zaynagro in 2015, said Zavery.

DRY RIVER BEDS

Climate change is taking a toll across east Africa and significantly irregular weather is becoming commonplace in nations such as Kenya, Somalia, Uganda and Ethiopia, leading to lower rains.

The recurring droughts are destroying crops and pastures and are starving animals - pressing countless people in the Horn of Africa to the verge of extreme hunger.

The variety of Kenyans in need of food aid in March surged by almost 70 percent over a period of eight months to 1.1 million, largely due to poor rains, according to federal government figures.

With nearly half Kenya's 47 counties stated to have a major lack of rain, humanitarian agencies are warning of increased appetite in the months ahead.

"Only light rains is anticipated through June ... and this is not expected to relieve drought in impacted locations of Kenya and Somalia," said the Famine Early Warning Systems Network in its newest report.

"Well below-average crop production, poor animals body conditions, and increased local food prices are prepared for, which will minimize poor families' access to food."

In Kitui's Kyuso location, the indications are already apparent.

Rivers, water pans and dams are drying up as a result of the extended dry spell.

Villagers suffer travelling longer distances - sometimes more than 10 km (6 miles) with their donkeys laden with empty jerry cans searching for water.

Small-scale farmers, the majority of whom are dependent on rain-fed farming, go over plans to offer their goats to make ends fulfill if the harvest is bad.

BATTLING DROUGHT WITH BIODIESEL

But not all Kitui's farmers are stressed.

A little but growing number are shedding their problem of reliance on the weather - and purchasing irrigation systems powered by Zaynagro's cotton seed biodiesel through a pay-as-you-go plan introduced more than 3 years earlier.

Neighbouring farmers unite to invest in the watering system - which includes the biodiesel pump, 12 metres of pipelines and 10 litres of biodiesel - at costs beginning with 32,000 shillings, depending on the size of the pump.

The farmers make a preliminary payment, then pay interest-free monthly instalments up until the total is settled. They purchase the biodiesel to run the pumps from Zaynagro at 80 shillings a litre.

Farmer Alex Babu Kitheka, 39, said the biodiesel pump allowed him to irrigate a larger portion of his one-acre plot, where he grows a range of veggies consisting of maize, tomatoes, spinach and sweet potatoes.

"With a diesel pump, maize yields were lower and I would get 15,000 shillings in 3 months. With the biodiesel pump, I can make 45,000 shillings," stated Alex Babu Kitheka, standing near his plot in Ilangilo village, 40 km (25 miles) from Kitui town.

CIRCULAR ECONOMY

Other farmers indicate the scheme as a significant advantage in assisting enhance their output.

"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 Munyoki, 41, as he stood beside his blue biodiesel pump.

"Having a plan like this helps us a lot. Our yields are great which means we can settle the expense of the pump slowly in percentages, and have money left over to pay the school costs."

Zaynagro's initiative is still in its early phases, with couple of farmers having repaid the full expense of the pumps.

But such biofuel schemes are appealing due to the fact that they develop a circular economy by turning waste to biofuel for revenue, stated Sanjoy Sanyal, senior associate for Clean Energy Finance at the World Resources Institute.

The simpleness of the model - user friendly, robust innovation, ensured supply of biodiesel combined with a pay-as-you-go plan - might help energize rural Africa, he said.

"There is a mosaic of sustainable energy choices in the world. The essential problem is evaluating ideas and techniques in a collaborative style," said Sanyal.

"Other cotton ginning factories in the region must attempt and gain from this experiment. Banks must begin try out loans to groups of farmers. International donors and investors need to support experimentation."

($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)