Kenya: Introducing urban farming solutions to provide income and healthy produce
“At the bottom of the coin, food security for communities is the main goal of all urban ag projects.”
By Rebekka Boekhout
Hort Daily
July 16, 2021
Excerpt:
“The water people use for farming around here come from the Nairobi River that is heavily polluted,” says Charles. Since hydroponics was completely new to the area, the V4C team started with a small-scale household model farm made up of two Ebb and Flow hydroponics tables. Crops produced were spinach and pak choi. The Swedish company Ljusgårda became the main investor enabling the project to grow.
Water pollution is not the only problem in the area. Due to the near presence of the Dandora dumpsite, the soil is unsuitable for growing vegetables due to high toxicity. Many locals work on this quite dangerous site to scavenging waste to survive. “Having a sustainable livelihood is a fundamental step towards a safer, healthier and more prosperous future,” Maria states.
She continues, “many people who move to Nairobi’s outskirts are farmers by origin, so they know how to grow vegetables”. The main problem is that the soil is toxic around there. “Therefore, we want to offer an alternative to conventional farming providing extra safety. This way they will have access to nutritious food, and they will also make a living.”
