Selu Africa plans KSh13bn Galana-Kulalu maize expansion with Equity Bank backing

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Selu Africa Limited plans to invest KSh13bn over the next three years to expand maize farming at the Galana-Kulalu irrigation scheme in Kilifi County, with Equity Bank financing the push. The company says irrigation and precision farming have already lifted yields on its plots to as much as 35 bags an acre.

For maize buyers, millers and farmers, the plan matters because it is one of the largest private bets yet on turning Galana-Kulalu into a steady source of home-grown grain, at a time when Kenya still spends heavily on food imports.

From 500 to 2,000 acres in a year

Selu Africa runs a 20,000-acre parcel within the scheme. It raised the land under crop from 500 acres in 2025 to 2,000 acres this year, which means only about a tenth of its parcel is being farmed so far. The KSh13bn programme is meant to widen that area while pushing yields above nine tonnes a hectare.

Yields of 35 bags an acre, if counted in standard 90kg bags, work out to roughly 7.8 tonnes a hectare, so the company is aiming for a further jump on top of results that are already well above what most rain-fed farms in Kenya produce. Our ranking of the top maize-producing counties in Kenya shows how output is still concentrated in the North Rift and western regions, not the coast.

Selu Group founder and chairman Peter Njonjo said the farm uses irrigation sprinklers, agricultural drones, renewable energy and data collection to guide planting and the use of inputs such as fertiliser and crop protection products.

Why Equity Bank is lending to farming

Equity Bank says it is financing commercial farming projects to raise food production and cut Kenya’s reliance on imported food. Equity Bank Kenya managing director Moses Nyabanda said agriculture contributes about 23% of the country’s gross domestic product.

“We continue to spend hundreds of billions of shillings annually importing food. That gap is our opportunity,” Nyabanda said.

The lender is targeting agriculture to make up 30% of its loan book under its Africa Recovery and Resilience Plan. It says that lending also covers businesses tied to farming, including input suppliers, transporters and produce traders. Farmers and agribusinesses that want to talk to the bank can find its contacts and paybill details in our Equity Bank help guide.

Partners and jobs

The Galana-Kulalu project works with agricultural companies including machinery maker AGCO, Campo and Bayer AG, while LEAF Africa supports its research work. Input suppliers stand to gain as planted acreage grows; see our list of fertiliser companies in Kenya and the Kenya Seed Company branches for the main local players.

The expansion is expected to create more demand for workers in farm operations, machinery, agronomy, transport and processing. Some local workers have already picked up skills in irrigation, pest control and fertiliser application. Job seekers in Kilifi and the wider coast can follow new openings on Jobinkenya.

What to watch

The key test is whether Selu Africa can keep yields high as it scales from 2,000 acres towards a larger share of its 20,000-acre parcel, and how much of the harvest reaches the local market. Galana-Kulalu has long been pitched as a way to ease Kenya’s maize deficit, and a private operator hitting nine tonnes a hectare at scale would be a clear sign the model can work.