Introduction: City Context

Freetown, the capital city of Sierra Leone, has a current estimated population of 770,000.  It has the highest amount of rainfall (>3500 mm) in West Africa. There is a south to north range of valleys on which market gardening activities occur (See figure 1). Urban agriculture in Freetown resulted from a complex interaction of economic and social processes. Historical patterns of urban bias in policies of economic development, coupled with the recent political instability led to a huge rural-urban migration. In Freetown, the majority of these rural migrants established squatter camps on the peripheries of the city as a subsistence activity. Some of these areas include the Bomeh and Kingtom dumpsites, New England/ George Brook and Regent communities. Most of the gardeners belong to two minority tribes, the Limba and Lokko (which are recent immigrants to Freetown due to the war).

Figure 1 : Urban agricultural sites and number of farmers in Freetown

Types of urban and agriculture

Most farmers in Freetown practice intensive cultivation through multiple cropping. Plot sizes vary, less than 0.01 ha (and sometimes even < 0.003ha) in the irrigated lowlands. There is an obvious correlation between plot sizes and crops cultivated: plots of less than 0.01ha are used for leafy vegetables and the larger plots are used for annual crops and primarily staple foods. The type of crops cultivated also depends on the market. In addition to balancing the diet, some crops are regarded as status symbols. More pot herbs (krain-krain and greens) are produced, for example in Bo, Kenema and Makeni more lettuce and cabbage is produced.

Mainly vegetables and short duration crops like maize, egg plant, cucumber, radish, beans, tomato, okra, pepper, melons and sweet potatoes are grown. Cassava is cultivated, more for the leaves than the tubers/roots. Rice is also grown rain fed in the lowlands because the soil is waterlogged during the rainy season and is unsuitable for any other crop. A few people engage in ornamental production for indoors. Fruit trees (mangoes, citrus, papaya and coconut) are planted around homesteads.
Livestock keeping is restricted to poultry and piggery production, but on a very small scale particularly on the peripheral areas of Freetown. Few small ruminants such as sheep and goats are raised either on free range or in enclosures mainly for subsistence and occasionally for cash. Interest in guinea pig and rabbits is increasing.
Women dominate in urban agriculture in Freetown, many of whom are heads of single households, responsible for a substantial share of the households’ food security. Production is labour-intensive, using simple and rudimentary farm tools for land preparation. Seeds are either sown directly or nursed and transplanted either on mounds or flat lands. Some producers use watering cans, but most use buckets to water their crops.
Access to land, cost of seeds, and access to water are among the key constraints to UPA in Freetown

There is a need for lobbying and advocacy to the authorities, to allow farmers to use unused lands for urban agriculture. The formation of farmer groups and associations is also considered to be important as those that form associations reportedly received supplies from the MAFS (Ministry of Agriculture Forestry and Food Security). 

Multi-stakeholder Policymaking and Action planning on urban agriculture (MPAP) on urban agriculture in Freetown

The Training of Trainers workshop and the first part of the training on Multi-Stakeholder Processes for Action Planning and Policy Formulation (MPAP) were both held in June 2006. The training, in which trainers from Ibadan, Accra and Freetown participated, resulted in a shared understanding of the concept of urban agriculture in Freetown and a clear understanding of Freetown Urban and Peri-Urban (FUPAP) objectives and approach by all involved. The MPAP training was divided in two parts. Next to the the formation of the MPAP team for Freetown and development of common vision and objectives, this first training was meant to prepare the team on the Exploratory Survey. The second MPAP training was held from end of November 2006, where results of the exploratory survey were discussed and further development of FUPAP, the ensurance of  necessary political support and recognition, and the draft Strategic Action Plan were discussed. 

Exploratory study

The four components of the exploratory study are described below briefly (also see: http://www.iwmi.cgiar.org/africa/West/projects/RUAFII-CFF.htm#Project%20description/background:. This is the main source of information for the multi-stakeholder forum and policy seminar to be held in the nearest future.

Inventory of Urban Agriculture
The main crops cultivated by urban farmers are leafy vegetables, some of which are; greens, krain krain, sourel? Give English or Latin Names, garden eggs and okra, as well as sweet potato and cassava leaves. These crops are grown on all study sites in both dry and wet season. Rice is grown as a sole crop in the lowland in the periphery (i.e. east and west) of Freetown in the wet season only. Other agricultural activities identified in this study are marketing, floriculture, livestock (pigs, small ruminants, poultry, and aquaculture). Urban and peri-urban agriculture occurs on public lands, institutional lands, private lands, and lands with mixed ownership. There are about 1400 people engaged in UPA in Freetown with production dominated by Female (80%). The study identified UPA as contributing to household food security and nutrition, and a source of additional household income and employment among others. The figure above shows some urban agriculture sites and number of farmers.

Land use

There is great potential for urban agriculture in Freetown, especially in the peri-urban areas and the government owned coastal regions. Vacant lands for UPA are not readily available in central Freetown due to competing land uses such as residential, industrial and commercial. Currently, out of the total 101ha of land under cultivation, approximately 86ha, representing about 85% is found on the peripheries (low lying coastal areas) of Freetown. Vast amount of land (>200ha) is available in the coastal areas for UPA activities. Saline water intrusion is however a limiting factor to farming in this area. 

Stakeholder analysis

Stakeholders in UPA can be divided into three major groups; lower level stakeholders, that is  those directly involved in UPA, such as farmer associations, transporters and marketers; upper level stakeholders, that is those indirectly involved in UPA (like development co-operations, government departments and NGOs.); and potential stakeholders (those who would like to work in UPA). Though all the stakeholder groups are, in one way or the other, involved in UPA, some government ministries and NGOs were found to be actively involved, supporting farmers financially, providing seedlings and agricultural inputs, and giving technical assistance to farmers.

Policy review
Within the frame of the  existing policies there is the need for government to put in place a mechanism for effective coordination of urban and peri-urban agricultural projects, programmes and activities by: ensuring direct stakeholder participation in planning and implementation; defining a leading stakeholder for coordination and ensure general agreement from all; providing a legal frame work for urban and peri-urban related activities; regulating access to land and water, as well as to organic waste and waste water; and defining environmental and health standards for urban and peri-urban agriculture.

Linkages

For more information on the RUAF-Cities Farming for the Future Programme in the region, contact the regional coordinator at RUAF West-Africa (Anglophone) or see their website.

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