Urban agriculture under threat - The land security question in Kano, Nigeria

This paper is concerned with the issue of providing food to the rapidly gro wing urban populations in poor countries of Sub-Saharan Africa. Much emphas is has been given in recent years to the growing of basic foodstuffs in urb an and peri-urban areas. While there is a considerable body of literature w hich views urban agriculture in a relatively positive light, other less ext ensive literature raises concern about its impact on environment and people . The literature shows that urban agriculture provides farmers,vith importa nt employment and food provisioning opportunities that would not otherwise be available. However, empirical evidence presented here from the city of K ano in northern Nigeria suggests that such activities and livelihoods are b eing threatened by acute problems of tenure insecurity and encroaching land development. It is suggested that local authorities have a key role to pla y in enabling and supporting urban cultivation, since there are city-wide b enefits to be gained from such activities, including food supply and employ ment creation among low-income residents, and flood control. More research is needed to clarify certain issues, not in the least to answer the express ed concerns about the impact of urban agriculture on environment and health . (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.