PASS ME THE SACK PLEASE; IT’S MY LAND

Joseph Onyango tending to Sukuma Wiki (Kales) in sacks which they have planted at Raila Village, Kibera on March 19, 2014. Photo/ JEFF ANGOTE (NAIROBI)  

By VINCENT ACHUKA

Joseph Onyango hums a tune of a popular benga song as he waters sukuma wiki on a communal farm in Raila Village, Kibera.

As he waters the leafy plants in 60 sacks, one can see great satisfaction on his face since the crops are doing well.

Mr Onyango belongs to Kisima, a 20-member self-help group that has for four years practised sack farming on a 20 by 30 feet farm in the slum.

“This type of farming uses little space but one reaps as much as the person who has planted on a normal farm,” says Mr Duncan Ngoya, another member of the group.

To start, one needs gunny bags, which go for Sh20 each, loam soil and pebbles.

“You place the pebbles at the centre of the sack running from bottom to top then surround them with soil.  These stones make it easy for water to flow through the sack as the crops grow,” explains Mr Mboya.

For better harvest, mix the soil with manure.

“After filling a gunny bag with soil, you make holes around it where you will plant the seeds. The seedlings go for Sh5,” Mr Onyango explains, adding that a sack holds between 10 and 15 plants.

He says that getting loam soil, particularly in the slum, is a challenge.

“When we started, we had difficulties finding red loam soil. We approached a contractor who was excavating soil in Langata. He sold it to us at Sh150 per wheel barrow,” notes Mr Onyango, who adds that the group learned the type of farming from Solidarites International, an organisation that provides humanitarian aid to vulnerable communities.

With two wheelbarrows filling a sack, Kisima members found this expensive. They ended up filling eight sacks for Sh2,400.

The eight sacks grew to the 60 they currently have. They harvest three bunches of sukuma wiki from each plant in their garden.

With each sack holding 15 plants, the group harvests 2,700 bunches of sukuma wiki every week, which they sell at Sh10 each at Toi market. This translates to Sh27,000 a week.

“We take turns to sell the produce at the market to maximise profits,” says Mr Mboya.

He explains that they do not use pesticides or fertiliser on their crops. Instead, they buy rabbit urine from farmers in the slum and use it as pesticide.

Experts, however, are hesitant to endorse the practice.

“This is a technology that has never been subjected to any tests to ascertain whether it can work and if this was done, the Ministry of Agriculture was not been involved. We have, however, heard that farmers are using rabbit urine to control pests,” says Mr Livingstone Ekisa from the Ministry of Agriculture.

He, however, acknowledges that animal urine makes good fertiliser.

According to Mr Onyango and Mr Mboya, sukuma wiki from a single sack is enough to feed a family of five for three days.

“With five sacks, a family can be food-secure for 15 continuous days and by the time they get to the last sack, the first three have already replenished meaning they can have constant vegetable supply all year round.”

In Nairobi, a bunch of sukuma wiki goes for Sh10 on average. The price depends on availability.

During the dry season, the price goes up with some vendors reducing the size of a bunch to maximise on profits.

“People spend a lot of money on sukuma wiki yet they can grow it on a small plot using sack farming,” says Mr Mboya.

He explains that a family of five needs five bunches of sukuma wiki and four tomatoes for a meal.

“This translates to Sh70. If they eat sukuma wiki each day, they will spend Sh2,100 a month. This is a lot of money, especially for the urban poor,” he says.

However, this does not mean that sack farming can only be practised by people living in slums.

“Anyone can engage in sack farming, including those living in gated communities. The technology is simple and less costly,” he adds. Mr Ekisa encourages farmers in urban areas to practise sack farming.

“Families can grow tomatoes, capsicum, coriander, cowpeas, beans and onions even on their balconies,” he says.

International Committee of the Red Cross has recognised sack farming as a solution to food security in urban area.
NMG/SEEDSOFGOLD