Accra Urban Vegetable Farming
Accra, Ghana · Operator: Smallholder vegetable farmers with Accra Metropolitan Assembly & partners
Overview
Widespread urban and peri-urban vegetable farming in Ghana's capital, Accra. Farmers within the city produce about 90% of the vegetables consumed there, using vacant land and water-channel margins to feed the city.
Citizen participation
More than 1,000 smallholder farmers grow leafy vegetables on vacant lots and land along drains and streams in urban Accra. Citizen-farmers organize to advocate for safe water and land, supported by the Accra Metropolitan Assembly and NGOs with training.
Operating model
Mostly individual, small-scale market gardening. Farmers use poultry manure and compost as fertilizer and sell produce in city markets for their livelihoods.
Impact
Farmers within the city supply about 90% of the vegetables consumed in metropolitan Accra, and urban agriculture is said to produce more than half of the food consumed in the city, providing income and fresh produce to many households.
Land tenure
Farmers often use public, private and water-channel land informally, frequently facing the risk of losing access to the land.
Crops
- lettuce
- cabbage
- spring-onion
- vegetables
Scale
Over 1,000 smallholder vegetable farmers; about 47 ha in the rainy season and 116 ha in the dry season
Sources(2)
This entry is compiled from the public sources, official sites and research below.
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