Sidai has been a partner of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation since 2011. The focus of the partnership has always been on developing a business that delivers ‘last mile’ animal health services to livestock keepers in a financially sustainable manner across Kenya. The Foundation supported Sidai’s early development and currently supports the company’s farmer and professional staff training.

Sidai has pushed market boundaries by opening up access to quality products in remote locations in Kenya, including the drought-prone areas of Northern Kenya where 75% of Kenya’s livestock, valued at $4 billion are found. Inputs have mostly been provided through donor-funded interventions triggered by a drought or disease outbreak. These interventions create dependency and crowd-out the private sector, further exacerbating the problem of sustainable access to services.

The Brooke has supported a training project in Sidai that aims at increasing the level of knowledge of Sidai staff, franchisees and stockists about the need for pain relief in all domestic animals. The project ensured that pain relief products are more widely available through the Sidai network and 445 technical staff have been trained in their correct us.

The German Government development agency GIZ through its project ‘Employment for Sustainable Development for Africa” has supported Sidai by providing Business Development Services to Sidai’s franchisees, interns and field staff. 

Sidai’s Chairman, Dr Christie Peacock, is currently serving on an Advisory Panel at the OIE which is developing global guidelines on Public Private Partnerships in the animal health sector. These guidelines will be published in 2019.