Gender, Urban Agriculture and Food Systems (GUAFS) Training
By: Shazara Khan
Digital Research Officer YP
From January 27th to February 4th, I took part in the Gender, Urban Agriculture and Food Systems (GUAFS) Training at the Mazingira Institute. The session was held to educate young farmers in Nairobi County about different aspects of agriculture. Several trainers and mentor-practitioners shared their expertise in fields such as crop production and management, organic waste management and food processing. A team from Montreal, who came to Kenya on an agricultural study visit, also participated in the training. I learned about important concepts like value addition, which is the process of transforming raw materials into more valuable products, and unique waste management methods like as Black Soldier Fly Farming. I prepared a presentation to teach the trainees about Mazingira’s app and database. This was beneficial for the Women’s Spaces Project since it helped us identify which parts were most difficult for users (i.e. the farmers) to understand. I will use this knowledge to liaise with the developer and help improve the app and database for future use. Furthermore, I will use feedback to improve my performance for future presentations. I had several outputs during this time, including posts on various social media channels to strengthen Mazingira’s outreach and communication.
I met with many participants during the GUAFS Training, all of whom were from different areas within Nairobi County. I spoke to a trainee named Grace Macharia, who identifies as a woman with a physical disability. She told me about her experiences with pig farming and how it is often difficult to overcome the stigma associated with her dwarfism. Upon training at Mazingira, Grace learned many things and felt empowered to persevere despite her disability. “I want to add rabbits, but I don’t have resources or capital. But when I have capital I will start,” she said, speaking of her ambition to start rabbit-keeping. This impact is necessary because it encourages diversity in farming not just among different genders, but among people with different backgrounds and experiences. Through their empowerment of women, Mazingira Institute has created a ripple effect which encourages people from all backgrounds to pursue agriculture
Field Visit to Rhino Park Farm and Miare Farm
By: Shazara Khan
Digital Research Officer YP
In the past two weeks, from February 5th to the 19th, I joined the Montreal Study Team on a field visit to two farms. The first farm, Rhino Park, was located in Karen and was an excellent example of how a large-scale dairy farm operates and maximizes value addition. The second farm, Miare Farm, was located in Kasarani and showed us how an urban dairy farm operates in limited space. Through these visits, I learned more about the different mixing processes dairy, and how small spaces can be maximized to keep different kinds of livestock. These skills are beneficial to me since they helped me appreciate the complexities of dairy farming. Previously, my knowledge of urban agriculture was mostly limited to crop farming, so this field trip was an enlightening experience. From this visit, I took many photos and videos which I will use in the newsletter. This product will contribute to the project by documenting the Montreal Study Visit and demonstrating the trip’s main purpose, which is the exchange of knowledge between Kenya and Canada. Furthermore, I joined the Documentary Crew on field visits to gather footage for the Gender, Urban Agriculture and Food Systems (GUAFS) Training Documentary. This was important since we saw how the training has impacted farmers and how it contributed to many of their success stories. In addition to these activities, I also participated in the NEFSALF Forum, which is a forum held by Mazingira to discuss the food systems in Nairobi County.
I met with several participants of the Women’s Spaces Project, many of whom were former trainees with Mazingira. Though we visited several farms, one participant named Peris Ngure made a strong impression on me. We went to her farm in Kayole, where she and her father keep pigs and poultry and grow crops. Peris learned about the GUAFS Training from her father, who encouraged her to take part and develop her farming skills. While she initially had some knowledge of the subject, she learned many important skills at Mazingira, including how to effectively use small spaces through urban agriculture technologies like cone gardens. Peris has since passed on the knowledge to her father and they have been using it to keep their farm thriving in an urban area. The project has impacted her life by changing her attitude towards farming. In a time when young people are struggling to find white collar jobs, Peris is turning back to agriculture in order to make a living. As a child, her father encouraged his family to farm as a way to make ends meet and he continued this practice when his children were grown.