Research & reports

Batanai L Sammie, Charles Nyamutowa, Munyaradzi Gwazane · International Journal of Scientific Research · Zimbabwe

This study used FGDs and case studies to identify perceived causes of failure of NGO urban agriculture initiatives in Zimbabwe. The study identified the principal-agent relationship between NNGOs and LNGOs as the epicenter of all initiative failures.

Gerald Forkuor, Olufunke Cofie · International Journal of Remote Sensing · Sierra Leone (Freetown)

A land-use and land-cover (LULC) change mapping exercise in Freetown, Sierra Leone, used multi-temporal Landsat data from 1974, 1986, and 2000 to map nine LULC classes. Built-up areas increased by at least 140% between 1974 and 2000, and 882 ha (27%) of agricultural lands in 1986 were converted to residential purposes by 2000. These conversions indicate a strong link between urbanization, agriculture, and deforestation, negatively impacting agricultural land availability.

Hong‐Yi Chen · Nongye xiandaihua yanjiu · Global

This article discusses the vulnerability of urban agriculture, identifying its performance in human resources, land resources, capital flows, and the ecological environment. The primary reason for this vulnerability is the unreasonable flow of human, financial, and material production factors, driven by opportunity costs, amidst rapid urbanization. Strategies for healthy development include enhancing protection awareness, promoting orderly rural labor flow, improving investment, and strengthening land resource protection.

Marie-Christine Zélem, Zelem, Marie-Christine · AgEcon Search (University of Minnesota, USA) · Senegal (Dakar)

This study identifies numerous constraints hindering the widespread adoption of organic waste utilization in agriculture in the peri-urban area of Dakar, Senegal. These constraints include the nature, availability, and accessibility of organic waste, poorly controlled urbanization, effects of seasonal variation, resistance to changes, and medical risks. The project, which combines agriculture with city waste management, faces these challenges.

Inge Wagemakers, Oracle Makangu Diki · Palgrave Macmillan UK eBooks · Congo (Kinshasa)

In rapidly growing African cities, particularly Kinshasa, urban agriculture is crucial for food provision, yet land available for agriculture decreases as cities expand. This study points out that in Kinshasa, population growth and a lack of empty land are pushing agriculture towards the city's periphery, threatening urban agricultural space. This situation highlights a conflict between the need to produce food and the need for living space.

José Luis Galdeano Tostado · Creatividad y sociedad: revista de la Asociación para la Creatividad · Global

This paper observes an increasing awareness of environmental issues and neighborhood action in city centers, with concepts like urban gardens and self-managed spaces becoming more familiar. It suggests that vacant lands and unused building sites in cities offer significant potential for citizens' creative initiatives. The abstract does not present any specific findings on governance challenges or critical interventions.

Ari Jokinen, Ville Viljanen, Krista Willman · Alue ja Ympäristö · Finland (Tampere)

This article analyzes the social and ecological significance of the Pispala allotment area in Tampere, Finland, where nearly 300 plots are used for urban farming, despite city plans for building purposes. A mixed-method analysis, using field observation, planning documents, biological surveys, and questionnaires, found that farming practices make the place visible, foster social interaction, and link the site ecologically to rare plant species. However, these crucial features of urban diversity are frequently disregarded by local administrative bodies in planning.

Hillary Anne Doerfler · D-Scholarship@Pitt (University of Pittsburgh) · Global

A literature review examined the use of school garden programs for health promotion among elementary school youth. The review found that school gardens successfully improved academic achievement, increased fruit and vegetable consumption, and enhanced social skills. However, significant barriers to implementation were identified, particularly in low socioeconomic status schools, including a lack of funding, insufficient gardening knowledge among teachers, and limited community and parent involvement.

Masao Makiyama, Mami Inoue · JOURNAL OF RURAL PLANNING ASSOCIATION · Global

This study examined kleingartens (stay-type allotment gardens) established by private organizations, finding an increasing number of such gardens. Case studies revealed that privately established kleingartens tend to have higher use fees compared to government-established ones. Furthermore, problems identified include the reduction of administrative and maintenance expenses, location conditions, and the succession of managers.

Charles French, Mimi Larsen Becker, Bruce E. Lindsay · Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development · Cuba (Havana)

This study examined urban agriculture in Havana, Cuba, using secondary data and interviews with 11 urban gardeners. It found that while agrarian reforms after 1991 led to the growth of private urban gardens and cooperatives, Cuba's integration with the global economy and adoption of free-market principles have since forced dramatic adjustments in the urban agriculture sector. This shift presents challenges to the sector's original role in food security.

Claire Nettle · Chain reaction · Global

This paper discusses how community gardening can contribute to food security. However, it finds that the potential contribution of community gardens to food security is limited by their insecurity of tenure.

Alec Thornton, Etienne Nel, Godfrey Hampwaye · Development Southern Africa · Zambia

A review of urban agriculture in Zambia's four largest cities revealed that despite attempts by the Kaunda government in the 1960s–1970s to create supportive policies, there is currently a near absence of institutional support, constraining farmers' activities. A survey of 400 farmers confirmed the value of urban agriculture as a survival strategy but also highlighted the lack of necessary support measures.

Lisen Hendeberg · · Sweden

This study compared Ebenezer Howard's garden city ideals with contemporary urban farming movements in Sweden through a literature review and analysis of three active movements. It found that when garden city ideas were implemented in Sweden between 1905 and 1930, much of the original ideological basis for self-sufficient small towns and collectively owned land was lost. While similarities exist in ideological starting points, their approaches to change differ.

Kwasi Appeaning Addo · Remote Sensing · Ghana (Accra)

This paper discusses the need for sustainable management of urban and peri-urban agriculture in Accra, Ghana. A lack of reliable data on the extent of urban/peri-urban areas used for farming has hindered the development of sustainable policies to manage urban farming in Accra. Ground-based survey methods are problematic and prohibitively expensive, making accurate assessment of urban farming's future role difficult.

Mark Redwood · Open House International · Global

Urban farmers often produce food on land with limited or no security of tenure, exposing them to the risk of being evicted for more profitable land uses. Without legal status, most forms of credit are inaccessible to farmers, pushing them to the margins. Recent projects suggest that banking systems need to develop a methodology to value informally controlled lands and indicate that advocacy groups can increase security and access to land for urban farmers.

Lei Yan-hua · · Australia

This paper discusses the state of therapeutic horticulture in Australia, describing the field as largely project-driven with little government or philanthropic funding to sustain long-term growth. It notes that recent initiatives in community gardens, school and children's gardens, and horticultural therapy services have expanded the scope of activity and, while still small compared with many other countries, are high-profile, community-led, and have secured significant government funding. However, the paper states that this needs to be balanced against numerous barriers facing the sector: insufficient research, limited organization and representation, few education and training opportunities, and a lack of outreach and community services.

R. Machiridza, Emmanuel Manzungu · University of Zimbabwe Institutional Repository (University of Zimbabwe) · Zimbabwe (Harare)

Perceptions of urban agriculture in Harare, Zimbabwe, shifted from prohibition before 1980 due to environmental concerns to de facto government policy after independence due to increasing urban poverty. Land was initially allocated to co-operatives primarily for political support, creating tension between political patronage and environmental protection. Critics argue that authorities only accepted urban agriculture's reality two decades post-independence, driven by its potential for poverty reduction and economic development.

Bertha Camacho Tuckermann · Knowledge Management for Development Journal · Cuba

An action-research study within an Urban Agriculture project in Cuba identified challenges in integrating learning and change into the monitoring and evaluation (M&E) of development projects. The main challenge was that the project team did not recognize M&E as a learning tool, believing results could be used against their work. A lack of time for learning and knowledge sharing was another observed challenge. To address these, resistance was overcome through dialogue, reflection, and action, leading to team empowerment, and the role of an external facilitator proved key in steering the learning process.

Kigumure Buhindwa · Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) · Rwanda (Kigali)

This study investigated malaria prevention activities in Kigali community gardens, Rwanda, through Community Health Volunteers (CHVs). A mixed-method approach, combining qualitative interviews and quantitative surveys, collected data on CHV activities and health outcomes. CHVs conducted weekly health screenings, reaching approximately 80% of the targeted population, and malaria prevalence dropped by 25% after six months. However, challenges included limited resources and inadequate training for CHVs, indicating that sustained support and additional training are necessary for long-term impact.

HU Yue-xiao · Nongye xiandaihua yanjiu · Global

This study on the industry orientation of urban agriculture, including trade, marketing, business model, and organizing orientations, identified problems such as industry parking, blurred functional orientation, and a lack of overall planning during urban agriculture orienting programs.

Mengjie Xu · Urban Problems · Global

This paper summarizes the types and characteristics of urban agriculture (UA) in less developed countries (LDCs), distinguishing it from UA in developed countries. It elucidates both the positive and negative effects of UA in LDCs, including impediments arising from its negative impacts. The study discusses the necessity of developing UA in LDCs and details measures to regulate its development, highlighting governance challenges.

Rocío García Bustamante, John Butterworth, M. Flierman, Daniel Herbas, Melvin Hollander, S. van der Meer, P. Ravenstijn, Magaly Reynaga, Gustavo Zurita · · Bolivia (Tarata)

In 2002, Tarata, Cochabamba, Bolivia, experienced violent conflicts over the right to use water from the Laka Laka dam for urban agriculture. The dam was intended for large-scale irrigation and domestic use, but not urban productive uses, leading to disputes when the urban population sought water for homestead cultivation. Although 5% of the reservoir yield was allocated for urban supply, its poor quality prevented drinking use, prompting the community to organize for its use in irrigating small plots, despite opposition from irrigation farmers.

Charles W. Howe · Environment and Development Economics · Global

This study noted that in inappropriate legal and administrative settings, groundwater becomes an open-access resource, leading to excessive externalities. Competition between urban and agricultural sectors for limited groundwater can lead to crises if appropriate policy instruments are not used to mediate it. For non-renewable groundwater stocks, without economic and demographic development planned according to long-term criteria, there is a risk of overly rapid exploitation, unsustainable population levels, and inappropriate infrastructure investment.

Keiichi Moritsuka, Yoshiyuki Tokunaga, Hiraku Hoshi, Hiroshi Suda · INFRASTRUCTURE PLANNING REVIEW · Global

This paper proposes policies for allotment garden facilities and management, based on a survey of users' consciousness. The survey found that some users rent gardens that do not satisfy their purpose due to a lack of publicly available information about allotment gardens. The paper concludes that garden managers must publicize the purpose of establishing gardens and show eagerness, while users should communicate with managers, guides, and other users.

Godfrey D. Mudimu, Shepherd Siziba, Benjamin Hanyani‐Mlambo · OpenDocs (Institute of Development Studies) · Zimbabwe (Harare)

This study in Harare, Zimbabwe, examined the socio-economics of urban crop production on municipal lands, cultivators' views, and land use conflicts. Urban agriculture, a widespread practice for subsistence maize and food security, is not supported by planners and conflicts with urban land use provisions. Findings revealed a serious lack of environmental concern among cultivators, with most ignoring stream bank regulations and lacking knowledge of environmental effects.