Identifying market opportunities for urban and peri-urban farmers in Kampala, Uganda

Kampala, the capital city of Uganda, has a population of approximately 1.2 million inhabitants that is growing at a rate of over 3.9 % per year. The growth of the city represents a large expansion in markets for agricultural products. Many of these markets offer comparative advantages to producers and processors located in or close to the city. Agriculture is widely practiced both within the municipal boundaries and peri-urban areas. In 1992, it was estimated that 56 % of land in the city was used for agriculture. The purpose of the study is to identify a portfolio of agricultural products with market demand, whose production is technically and economically feasible by urban and peri-urban farmers. The study has involved the following steps: a) a participatory rapid urban appraisal, b) a rapid market study, and c) an evaluation of the most promising options for urban and peri-urban farmers. This paper describes the methodology used and results obtained in the first two steps. The evaluation and selection of most promising options is on going. The rapid urban appraisal indicated that the most important commodities that farmers produce for sale are broilers, eggs, milk, pigs and pork, fruit (mango, avocado, jackfruit and paw paw), mushroom