Impact of Urbanisation on Food Systems

Urbanisation

Contact:
FoodAfrica Secretariat
Natural Resources Institute
The University of Greenwich at Medway
Central Avenue
Chatham Maritime
Kent ME4 4TB
United Kingdom

Email: Keith Tomlins
Tel: +44 (0)1634 883360
Fax: +44 (0)1634 883567
Web: www.nri.org

Introduction to the discussion
Today more people live in and around cities than in rural areas. In Africa urbanization is relatively new, but over a third already live in cities and the rate of rural-to-urban migration is increasing. Governments will face enormous challenges to generate jobs and to provide the services, infrastructure and social supports necessary to sustain livable and stable environments.
Urbanisation affects all sectors of the food system. As the urban population increases more food needs to be transported and distributed to cities. Food for urban dwellers becomes more expensive as transportation and distribution costs increase and because a far greater proportion of processed products are required.

This and other key issues such as ‘Food Supply and Distribution’, ‘Street Food’ and ‘Urban and peri-urban Agriculture’ are introduced in the Introduction paper below.

Summaries by the moderator	Download as
Moderators Summary - Urbanisation on 8th April 2003 - By Axel Drescher	Word

Link to 'Perspectives of the Urbanizations Process', (A Drescher)
Introduction Paper

Link to 'What is Urban Agriculture', (A Drescher)
Short Paper on the topic Urban Agriculture

Discussion internet Forum	Download as
Internet Forum - Discussion Urbanisation – 3 -7th April 2003	Word
Internet Forum - Discussion Urbanisation – 7- 8th April 2003	Word
Internet Forum - Discussion Urbanisation – 9-11th April 2003	Word

Moderators Summary - Urbanisation on 8th April 2003 - By Axel Drescher

Dear members of the discussion group,

T his is mainly a response to the contributions of Professor Olusola Oyewole and Dr. Wellington Otieno.

I would like to refer to both contributions on the linkages between rural food production and urban consumption behaviours.
Of course food quality heavily depends on food the food chain: - starting on production level, transport, market hygiene and infrastructure, and last but not least consumer behaviour (storage facilities, food preparation etc.). Food is lost on all levels and even the remains are not adequately used - thinking about the large amount of organic market waste on most central markets - which are largest in urban centres.

It is not at all my concern to again artificially divide urban from rural areas - in contrary the urbanisation discussion especially tries to highlight the multiple linkages that exist between the both areas. Food production takes place in all areas: rural - peri-urban - urban. Food that is produced in different areas is often different - mainly staples in real and mainly fresh food in urban and peri-urban. This is of course not everywhere and always like this. The distance to markets of all produce is essential in terms of food quality. I fully agree that the issue of food quality should be promoted in all areas where food is produced, transported and stored.

If people in urban areas decide to buy their meat in the late evening, when it is cheaper, I guess it has often to do with limited purchasing power of urban households - so it should be seen as a livelihood strategy of those households, eventually negatively affecting their health status. This is exactly one of the reasons why many urban households decide to produce their own food in their backyards or somewhere else. This gives them the chance to slaughter a chicken whenever they want to. And this remains one of the reasons to maintain and support ("institutionalise") urban food production and make it more save and healthy.

Best regards
Axel Drescher.

Moderator Dr Axel W. Drescher studied biology in Freiburg and obtained a PhD in Geography in 1988 for his field research in Southern Spain on ecological impacts of early vegetable production in greenhouses. He was lecturer at the University of Zambia (UNZA) from 1990 to 1993 and obtained his “second PhD” (German university teaching degree) in 1996 for research on the role of home gardens for food security and sustainable development in Zambia and Zimbabwe. Since 1998 he worked frequently for the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), mainly dealing with urban and peri-urban agriculture. He is currently co-ordinator of the Section on „Applied Geography of the Tropics and Subtropics (APT)“, Associate Professor at the Faculty of Forestry and Environmental Sciences at the University of Freiburg, Germany, and Freelance Consultant. One main current activity is with the EU Asia Urbs project “GIS-based Urban Environmental Resources Management and Food Security Project” in Cagayan de Oro, The Philippines.

Objectives of this forum
- Review the research and development activities that affect food systems in sub-Saharan Africa;
- Identify gaps in current food and health research strategies;
- Recommend future research strategies;
- Improve the links between researchers, in particular young scientists, in Africa and Europe.