Influence of Governance and Regulatory Instruments in Promoting Food Security Within Nairobi Metropolitan Region: a Case of the Peri-urban Zone of Machakos.

Abstract

Kenya’s economy is currently represented by Agriculture at 24% of the GDP. In the country, there are different types of agricultural activities engaged by more than 5 million smallholders. The compounded average growth rate of agriculture was 5.2% between 2001 and 2005 but at 8% as growth in export. However, a one percent growth in formal employment was also witnessed. Four major sub-sectors form the Agricultural sector. These are industrial crops, food crops, horticulture, livestock, and fisheries. Development of these sectors is one of the government’s objectives as indicated in vision 2030. Challenges associated with productivity, land use, marketing and value addition, plague the sector despite the central role agriculture plays in Kenya’s economy. Peri-urban agriculture is a strategy adopted by low-income households to meet their food and nutritional requirements. The study objective was to examine the current National and County governance regulatory instruments on peri-urban agriculture of Nairobi metropolitan city and their contribution towards achieving food security. The specific objectives of the study included assessing the knowledge, attitude, and practices of farmers towards peri-urban farming in Machakos, examining the effectiveness of national and county governance regulatory instruments. A descriptive survey design was conducted in Machakos County. Both structured and unstructured questionnaires were used to collect data from the farmers, and a response rate of 100% was obtained. A pilot test was administered to ensure the authenticity of the questionnaires before the actual study was conducted and some adjustments were done on the original questionnaires before administering it to the farmers. Data collected was coded and statistical package for social sciences used to analyze. Results are presented using tables, percentages, means, and frequencies. The study revealed that a majority of the respondents at 63.5% did not show recognition of any government policies on urban and peri-urban agriculture

and food security, while a few 14.5 % showed some recognition. The results also indicated that 46% had never received a visit from any extension officers within their locality, while extension officers had visited 27%.The most preferred form of communication was the internet at 39.5%, followed by radios at 36.5% and information from fellow farmers through networking at 14%. A small percentage was also keen on watching the television as a mode of getting relevant information. Farmers should be encouraged to adopt modern methods of farming including the use of covered greenhouses, irrigation systems to improve yields and avoid crop losses. Further, there is a need to improve on the marketing of crop production by opting for contracted farming where the farmers can negotiate the price of their produce tied to the cost of production. The national government, NGOS, and the civil society should participate more in activities promoting peri-urban agriculture from the farm level to marketing and in Extension services, which can enhance food security. The findings are important to all the stakeholders in the agriculture sector because they highlight areas that need an improvement, with the goal of ensuring peri-urban agriculture contributes towards food security