Anne Scheinberg and Yuan Zheng

In: UA Magazine no 23 - Urban nutrient management, pp. 35-38

Domestic waste in developing countries contains a great deal of organic material – ranging from 60 to 90 per cent (Lacoste and Chalmin, 2007). Some of this waste is routinely fed to animals, or decomposes in heaps in landfills, illegal dumps or transfer stations. There is widespread agreement that composting is a less expensive and more environmentally attractive way to manage this waste, especially in low- and middle-income countries.

Shingirayi Mushamba

In: UA Magazine No. 12 - Gender and Urban Agriculture

In 1997, I was working as a Town Planner in the town of Marondera in Zimbabwe. One morning, I was called to the Executive Mayor's office. When I went in, I could not find a chair to sit on, as the office was full of women, so I stood, receiving the instructions from the Mayor. The Mayor told me that because of a presentation on urban farming I had made to the council some time before, and because of my professional work as the Town Planner, he had an urgent task for me. He introduced the women in the room. They were members of ZANU PF's Women's League. They had asked the Mayor to allocate them pieces of land in the town, which they could use for growing maize, the staple food.

Fernando Neira Orjuela

In: UA Magazine No. 12 - Gender and Urban Agriculture

This article is a synthesis of a doctoral thesis undertaken in San Luis Tlaxialtemalco, a town of the Xochimilco Delegation of the southern zone of Mexico City, with a population of 12,553. Agricultural micro-enterprises have developed around production in greenhouses. This has proved to be a valid strategy for the farming families to generate income, but it has also served to improve the decision-making power and freedom of movement of women, enhancing their autonomy.

Madhumita Mukherjee, Rajarshi Banerjee, Arindam Datta, Soma Sen and Basundhara Chatterjee

In: UA Magazine No. 12 - Gender and Urban Agriculture

East Kolkata Wetland has been recognised as a highly productive, remunerative and employment-generating eco-system. The eco-system cleans the city environment and acts as a catalytic agent to change the city's waste into protein-rich Aqua Zone, which is also a major supplier of vegetable, fruit and horticultural products. Bengal women actively participate in a number of income-generating activities for their families. The project reported on here, was undertaken to develop an understanding of trends in fishery development and their implications for the periurban fishing community of Kolkata. A second objective was to investigate the women's role in fisheries and in the fishing community, in order to develop a correct strategy to strengthen women's meaningful participation. The study was done in three different periurban systems.

Kanhaiya Sapkota

In: UA Magazine No. 12 - Gender and Urban Agriculture

Periurban agriculture has been practiced for a long time in Nepal. While rural agriculture is predominantly subsistence oriented, agriculture in and around the urban areas is more market oriented. In Nepal there is no policy regulating periurban agriculture. Manahara, the low-lying area of Bhaktapur district located in the Kathmandu Valley, is typical for the area. Although suitable for all-seasonal crops, the land is cultivated mainly under intensive horticulture. Located near the major market centres, it is the main source of perishable vegetables for the people in the city, and the farmer can easily access his or her inputs.

S.J. Dima and A.A. Ogunmokun

In: UA Magazine No. 12 - Gender and Urban Agriculture

In Namibia, urbanisation has attained explosive rates since independence in 1990, along with the rapid migration of rural people to the urban areas in search of employment. As the driest country in Africa, Namibia's agricultural base is weak. Most vegetables and fruits sold in urban centres of Namibia are imported from South Africa. Despite this disadvantage, intensive urban farming activities, both on a commercial and a micro scale, are carried out in backyards, open spaces and along river courses. There is very little information available on this farming. A study was therefore conducted to collect, synthesise and analyse all available information on two municipalities in Namibia, namely Windhoek and Oshakati.

Juliet Kiguli and Lillian N. Kiguli

In: UA Magazine No. 12 - Gender and Urban Agriculture

Urban and periurban farming are increasingly important as a source of income and food for the urban population in Uganda. Women lack access to land, as do the poor marginalised migrant young men. Legal and policy frameworks are not fully promulgated for protection of urban farmers and especially women. Irrespective of some cultural inhibitors, Uganda has adapted affirmative action to improve gender relations. Lobbying and advocacy at the organisational and individual levels are important to improve women's access to land and micro-finances.

Grace Nabulo, George Nasinyama, Diana Lee-Smith and Donald Cole

In: UA Magazine No. 12 - Gender and Urban Agriculture

This article reports on a survey of 250 farmers growing food on former dump-sites and wastewater irrigated wetlands in Kampala city. The questionnaires were developed with the help of IDRC guidelines on gender analysis methods. The study seeks to describe the distribution of activities and resources, benefits and risks of urban agriculture based on gender. It shows that the main motivating benefit of urban agriculture in Kampala City is food and that women suffer more from a lack of ownership and control over land than men. Women are more likely to grow food crops on contaminated land, which makes them more vulnerable to health risks associated with improper management of urban agriculture.

Azage Tegegne

In: UA Magazine No. 12 - Gender and Urban Agriculture

Urban livestock production plays a substantial role in the food security of the city. Yet urban livestock keepers are still receiving little attention in terms of policy, and institutional and technical supports targeted at their needs. In Ethiopia, women perform 70% of the livestock production activities. Milk processing and marketing activities are mainly done by women, while selling and buying livestock is exclusively the men's responsibility. Women make important contributions to food production through the long hours they spend on the farm caring for household animals, selling farm products and processing food.

Yomi Oruwari and Margaret Jev

In: UA Magazine No. 12 - Gender and Urban Agriculture

Integration of gender in planning interventions improves programmes and policies especially oriented toward the poor in urban areas. Urban land use planning and gender involvement is a major issue in Nigeria at the moment, as it pertains to effective utilisation of urban land. In and around the city of Port Harcourt urban farmlands have given way to urban development activities, especially mineral oil exploitation and the development of land for housing. In this process, the inability of urban planners to cater for the growing needs of the urban farmers, especially women producing fresh vegetables and perishable fruits, is apparent and needs attention.