Farming at close quarters
A common saying is that necessity is the mother of invention. Lack of space creates creativity. This is shown in the myriad of forms in which people with little or no land produce food, fuel and other raw materials. Gardens on roofs, fast-growing trees as fences, plants inside old tyres, rabbits in abandoned garages, even a fish hatchery in the home. People in cities and other densely-populated areas have developed highly intensive forms of farming.
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4 - 5written by Luc MougeotFarming has probably been carried out in cities ever since they came into being. Luc Mougeot from the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) in Canada traces the history of farming from ancient cities to the challenges facing urban planning and research in the North and South at the dawn of the 21st century.
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6 - 7written by ILEIA editorial teamA common saying is that necessity is the mother of invention. Lack of space creates creativity. This is shown in the myriad of forms in which people with little or no land produce food, fuel and other raw materials. Gardens on roofs, fast-growing trees as fences, plants inside old tires, rabbits in abandoned garages, even a fish hatchery in the home. People in cities and other densely-populated areas have developed highly intensive forms of farming.
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8 - 9written by Daniel Caceres , Miryam ArbomoSocioeconomic policies implemented in recent decades in Argentina have led to division of land into small plots (minifundizacion) and expanding poverty belts around the big cities. Growing food in small gardens is seen as one way to help the poor feed their families. Daniel Cáceres and Miryam Arbomo present two case examples - one urban and one rural - from Córdoba Province in central Argentina.
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10 - 10written by Teobaldo PinzasEarly 1994 ETC Foundation asked Theobaldo Pinzás to make an exploratory study on urban agriculture in Peru. This is an excerpt from his report, focusing on his findings about urban vegetable growing. In his full report, he suggests that more attention be given to recycling of waste and sewage water.
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11 - 12written by David MidmoreVegetable growing can be intensified by means of a simple system of hydroponics - growing plants without soil - which uses resources efficiently and can be adapted to local conditions. David Midmore from the Asian Vegetable Research and Development Centre (AVRDC) presents a space-saving production system which can be used worldwide.
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13 - 13written by Julio Prudencio BöhrtIn Latin America urban farming is primarily a survival strategy for the poorest. This usually involves some form of gardening and small-scale animal keeping, but there have also been efforts to introduce hydroponics as a solution for landless people. This account of experience with People's Hydroponics comes from a longer article by Julio Prudencio Böhrt (1994), which gives an overview of urban farming in Latin America.
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14 - 15written by Robin MarshSeasonal hunger and malnutrition are ever present conditions for the landless or near landless rural poor and urban slum dwellers. These groups are particularly vulnerable because of low and irregular cash incomes. In Bangladesh, as in other tropical countries, many such households utilise the small area around their house to grow food to supplement field crops, purchased food and generate income for households with access to markets. The pilot home garden project of Helen Keller International (HKI) reported here has looked specifically at the impact of improved home gardening on the nutritional status and health of poor households.
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16 - 17With a population of 110 million of mainly rural-based people compressed on 148,393 km5 , Bangladesh presents one of the greatest challenges in the world to produce more food on less land. CARE's Local Initiatives for Farmer Training (LIFT) project has worked with farmers for more than 8 years to develop strategies to do just that: produce more with less. LIFT is implemented in both the southern and northwest regions of Bangladesh, bordering the Bay of Bengal and India, respectively.
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18 - 18written by Normita G. IgnacioUrban populations in developing countries are growing fast. It's expected that by 2025, urban centres in the developing world will be home to some four billion people, a figure equal to the world's total population in 1975 (World Resources, 1994). Rapid population growth and urbanisation are straining resources. Shelter, sewerage, clean water and even the most basic of amenities, food, are at a premium and malnutrition is endemic.
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19 - 19The Urban Agriculture Network is a focal point and resource centre for promoting urban farming in low-income countries. It brings together over 1000 NGOs, researchers, farmers, government agencies and international agencies from over 25 countries. The network promotes urban farming as a strategy to empower the poor, reduce hunger and malnutrition, promote income-generating employment and enterprise development, and make the urban environment healthier. The network promotes increased interaction and cooperation among agencies working in urban farming at local, national and international level.
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20 - 20written by Axel DrescherGardening on waste disposal sites is common practice in many developing countries. Such sites offer fertile land not used for other purposes, but toxic wastes and heavy metal pollution may threaten human health. Axel Drescher presents a case study of such a periurban garden in Zambia.
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21 - 21written by Julio Prudencio BöhrtWaste recycling has increased in several Latin American cities. This article gives a few examples of both solid waste and waste water recycling. But in general there is still a a lack of clear policies related to the management of waste and treated water for use in urban agriculture.
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22 - 23written by Beacon MbibaExpanding cities are engulfing farmland without providing alternative land for the displaced rural people, often peasants without land title. Herders continue to use the unbuilt spaces, the "city commons", but many residents do not appreciate the presence of cattle. Beacon Mbiba looks at this potentially conflictual situation in urban Zimbabwe.
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24 - 24written by Bob ØrskovWhat is a landless livestock keeper? Near cities there are industrial dairy or fattening units with next to no land but with high capital input and doubtful sustainability, as manure disposal creates problems. But here Bob Ørskov writes about a much larger group: the landless poor who keep animals in cities or intensive cropping areas.
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25 - 25Rabbits are productive and easy-to-keep animals that can recycle grasses and crop wastes into high-quality protein. Backyard rabbit-keeping requires little space and few external inputs. As Ateh Eugene explains, for these reasons and more, Heifer Project International (HPI) is promoting rabbit-keeping in Cameroon.
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26 - 29Hybrid seed production is generally the reserve of large-scale agribusiness, often to the detriment of local strains and small-scale operations. Improved germplasm of both crops and livestock often means reliance by developing countries on imported and high cost technology. Producing hybrid catfish in Vietnam, however, is a small-scale family business using a minimum of resources and this article describes how Mrs. Quynh Mai has mastered the techniques and the business skills to produce 70 million hybrid catfish seed/year in the front room of the family's home in the middle of Ho Chi Minh City.
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30 - 31written by Hugh GibbonFarmer participation in developing and spreading sustainable agricultural practices has been central to many articles in previous theme issues of the ILEIA Newsletter. In this article on a project in western Kenya Hugh Gibbon argues that experimentation with developing market opportunities should be integrated in such an approach.
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