Determinants of Choice of Marketing Outlets for African Indigenous Vegetables among the Agro-Pastoral Maasai of Narok and Kajiado Counties of Kenya

The Maasai of Narok and Kajiado counties have started embracing agro-pastoralism as a livelihood diversification strategy. Among the crop enterprises they have incorporated are African Indigenous Vegetables (AIVs) in a bid to take advantage of their resilience to the changing environment. Literature on market outlet choices has been thin, especially in developing countries where significant frictions make this question most salient. It is prudent to note that none of past studies identified factors affecting vegetable market outlet choices in Narok and Kajiado despite the high potential of vegetable production and marketing. However, for AIVs to be beneficial, it requires efficient marketing. An AIVs marketing analysis study was conducted in Narok and Kajiado counties to established the factors influencing the choice of AIVs marketing outlets among the agro-pastoral Maasai. Data was collected from 200 respondents using structured questionnaires. Purposive sampling method was used to select the sub counties and locations while a list from the extension offices was obtained and systematic sampling technique was used to select the households for the data collection. A multinomial logistic regression model was used to establish the factors influencing the choice of marketing outlets of AIVs. The results of the logistic regression model revealed that the choice of marketing outlet of the sampled agro-pastoral Maasai is influenced by quantity of AIVs sold, distance to the agricultural market, sex of the household, education level, household size, levels of value addition, farming experience in agro-pastoralism, off-farm income and marketing costs. In view of the research findings, it is imperative to enhance AIVs marketing in the studied areas to contribute to improved livelihoods among the agro-pastoral Maasai communities. Keywords: Agro-pastoralism, marketing outlets, choice of marketing outlets, livelihoods