African Urban Harvest: Agriculture in the Cities of Cameroon, Kenya and Uganda

Over the past two decades, how has urban agriculture changed in sub-Saharan Africa? Is city farming now better integrated into environmental management and city governance? And, looking ahead, how might urban agriculture address the needs of the low-income households and modernizing cities of Africa?

In this book, leading specialists in the fields of urban agriculture and urban environment present a unique collection of case studies that examines the growing role of local food production in urban livelihoods in sub-Saharan Africa. Amongst many issues, the authors probe the changing role of urban agriculture, the risks and benefits of crop–livestock systems, and the opportunities for making locally produced food more easily available and more profitable. Concluding chapters reflect on the policy and governance implications of greater integration of urban natural resources and the built environment, an expanded role for urban agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa and the crucial role of women in urban food systems.

African Urban Harvest will be of interest to decision-makers, development professionals, researchers, academics, and students and educators in urban planning, development studies, African studies, and environmental studies.

The editors

Gordon Prain has been Global Coordinator of Urban Harvest, the CGIAR system-wide program on urban and peri-urban agriculture, since its establishment in 1999. Prior to that, he led a network in Asia that supported research and capacity strengthening in the areas of urban home gardening and both urban and peri-urban agroprocessing.

Nancy Karanja is a professor in soil ecology at the University of Nairobi and from 2005 to 2009 was the sub-Saharan Africa Regional Coordinator for Urban Harvest. She has led a number of studies on nutrient harvesting from urban organic waste, reuse of urban wastewater for vegetable production, and assessment of health risks associated with urban livestock systems.

Diana Lee-Smith was the African Regional Coordinator of Urban Harvest from 2002 to 2005, during which period most of the research studies included in this book were carried out. As cofounder and Associate of the Mazingira Institute in Nairobi, she has carried out research in many areas including urban agriculture.