Bigot Flowers Kenya : Limiting the social and health impacts of COVID-19

On this November afternoon, in the long aisles of the greenhouses of Bigot Flowers Kenya, dozens of employees are cutting and carefully making bouquets of blossomed roses. Yet just a few months ago, the place was deserted with none of its horticultural workers, whose work had stopped as there was no activity.

“When the crisis started in March, the activity initially fell by 20 to 30%, then plummeted to
100% in less than a week”, remembers Jagtap Kakasaheb, an agronomist at the farm. It was a shock for the company, whereas the agriculture sector is the main contributor to GDP in Kenya, with 34.1% in 2019. If flowers are not distributed they are destroyed. At the onset of the epidemic, millions of flowers were destroyed in two weeks. “Because of the epidemic, we weren’t able to either get a supply of flowers or export them. It was a huge loss for the company”, says the agronomist.

Yet it was necessary to hold out. “When the epidemic started in March, we didn’t know what to do, there was so much fear and uncertainty and people didn’t know what was going to happen”, remembers Charity Opon (photo), Human Resources Director of Bigot Flowers Kenya. “The employees received their salaries in March, April and May. But in early June, it was clear that we wouldn’t be able to continue this. To stay afloat, we made the painful decision to put the employees on leave without pay. It was really hard.”

To support the local teams of Bigot Flowers Kenya, PROPARCO released emergency support. €100,000 to buy protective equipment and hire additional buses to reduce the risk of infection as much as possible in order to protect the health of the employees. This support has also maintained the jobs and incomes of people in the best possible conditions through the distribution of food vouchers.

Bigot Flowers Kenya is a subsidiary of the French family-run Bigot Flowers Group, which benefits from extensive experience in the cut flower sector. PROPARCO has been supporting Bigot Flowers for 10 years now and has a relationship of trust and transparency with it. Bigot Flowers first benefited from initial support from PROPARCO when it strengthened its activities in Kenya in 2010, then in 2014 through a loan to Bigot Finances.

The farm in Naivasha has 53 hectares labeled MPS and Fairtrade/Max Havelaar. This guarantees responsible production that respects its employees. The company also has a “major local” economic impact on local communities, says Charity Opon. “We ensure the health and safety of our employees. Their children also benefit from our scholarship program which covers 90% of annual tuition fees. We’ve also contributed to the construction of the hospital in Naivasha. It’s the only maternity clinic in Nakuru County where we are located.”

The activity of the Bigot Flowers Kenya horticultural farm has been hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. The Kenyan company has benefited from emergency support from PROPARCO to limit the social and health impacts. A report in Kenya