Abstract:
Introduction: as cities continue to grow rapidly due
to urbanization, urban dwellers have experienced
food insecurity resulting from an upsurge in the
cost of staple foods. The study investigated the
challenges constraining sustainable household
food security in Kasarani sub-county, Nairobi
County, Kenya. Methods: by the use of a
descriptive survey design, questionnaires and
expert guidance, data was collected for analysis
using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS).
The internal consistency and reliability coefficients
of 0.731 and 0.881 were used to test reliability
and consistency of the research instruments.
Article
Namenge Philip Tendet et al. PAMJ - 49(126). 18 Dec 2024. - Page numbers not for citation purposes. 2
Results: from a sample of 328 farmers, 65.55%
(n=215) were males while 34.45% (n=113) were
female. The married, divorced, single and widowed
were 63.41 (n=208), 23.78 (n=78), 5.79 (19) and
7.01% (n=23), respectively. Casual laborers,
business people and formally employed ones made
up 41.46 (n=136), 33.54 (110) and 25% (n=82),
respectively. 32.93% (n=108) practiced urban
farming while 24.70% (n=81) were involved in
commercial purposes and food security. 10.98%
(n=36) practiced urban farming for income
diversification while 12.19% (n=40) did it as a
hobby/custom and 2.13% (n=7) were unspecified.
63.11% (n=207) earned between 40-80 USD.
36.89% (n=121) earned between 80-120 USD while
4.02% (n=13) earned more than 120 USD. Urban
farming was constrained by flooding (MN-3.66)
followed by lack of rain (MN-3.52) pest/diseases
(MN=3.49), poor yields (MN=3.28) and soil erosion
(MN=3.23). Conclusion: the study recommends
adherence to weather forecasting to reduce on the
effects of flooding, adoption of measures to
prevent soil erosion and usage of pesticides
whenever applicable. A policy and institutional
framework for the sector need to be established to
enable urban farmers to mutually benefit from
urban farming.
