Introduction
Freetown is the capital city of Sierra Leone. It has the highest amount of rainfall (>3500 mm) in West Africa. It has south to north flowing stream valleys on which market gardening activities occur. Urban agriculture in Freetown resulted from a complex interaction of economic and social processes. Historical patterns of urban bias in policies of economic development, coupled with the recent political instability led to a phenomenon of rural-urban migration. In Freetown, majority of these rural migrants established squatter camps on the peripheries of the city as a subsistence activity. Some of these areas include the Bomeh and Kingtom dumpsites, New England/ George Brook and Regent communities. Most of the gardeners belong to two minority tribes, the Limba and Lokko (they constitute the most recent immigrants to Freetown).
Types and Characteristics of UA
Land available for UPA is very small and is always put into intensive cultivation through multiple cropping. Plot sizes varies less than 100 m2 (and sometimes even < 30 m2) in the irrigated lowlands. There is an obvious correlation between plot sizes and crops cultivated: plots of less than 100 m2 are used for leafy vegetables and the larger plots are used for annual crops, primarily staple foods. The type of crops cultivated also depends on the structure of the market population. In addition to balancing the diet, some crops are regarded as status symbols. More pot herbs (krain-krain and greens) are produced, for example in Bo, Kenema and Makeni and more lettuce and cabbage in Freetown. Mainly vegetables and short duration crops like maize, egg plant, cucumber, radish, beans, tomato, okra, pepper, melons and sweet potatoes are grown. Cassava is cultivated, but more for the leaves than the tubers/roots. Rice is also grown rain fed in the lowlands because the soil is waterlogged during the rainy season and is unsuitable for any other crop. A few people engage in ornamental production for indoors. Fruit trees (mangoes, citrus, papaya and coconut) are planted around homesteads.
Livestock activities are restricted to poultry and piggery production, but on a very small scale particularly on the peripheral areas of Freetown. Few small ruminants such as sheep and goats are raised either on free range or in enclosures mainly for subsistence and occasionally for cash. Interest in guinea pig and rabbitry is increasing.
Women dominate in UA in Freetown, many of whom are heads of single households, responsible for a substantial share of the households’ food security. Production is labour-intensive, using simple and rudimentary farm tools for land preparation. Seeds are either sown directly or nursed and transplanted either on mounds or flat. Some producers use watering cans, but most use buckets to water their crops.
The intensification of UPA in and around Freetown has apparently encouraged the increase use of external inputs (including inorganic fertiliser and pesticides) and /or internal inputs (organic materials such as municipal wastes, untreated human excreta and manures of farm animals. |
