Urban agriculture

In and around many cities in the region, I have seen people producing vegetables in small gardens. As this is a topic which interests me, I was glad to have the opportunity to talk and work with some of the farmers in order to learn from them. With high rates of un- or underemployment especially of young people and unused land close to natural and artificial streams, urban agriculture seems to be an obvious thing to do. However, there are many obstacles to overcome before the first harvest. Of particular importance is to protect the garden, especially from cows, goats and sheep that roam freely during the dry season, but also from uninvited human visitors during harvest time. To put up a wall, a fence or a thorny hedge is thus a necessary investment of time, money and effort. Watering is often done with watering cans or other plastic containers. In some places, I came across people using small pumps which I'd seen in Kenya several years ago, being used. They are one of the outputs of a rather successful development enterprise called KickStart.

Urban and periurban agriculture, i.e. agriculture in or close to cities, comes in many different forms, for example like the beautiful garden kept by the American Peace Corps volunteer Michelle near the hospital of Richard Toll, Senegal...


... or, along busy roads in Bamako, tree nurseries ...


... and other diverse gardens (here with bananas, mais, aubergine, salad, mangos, etc.)...


but also like this small plantation of sweet potatoes in an unused space near a bridge across a drain...

... or, in somewhat nicer locations, near the Niger River in Segou...


... and a large garden area on the outskirts of Djenné, where my friend Nouhoum is transplanting salad seedlings.