The short rains are pouring in the country, its lovely to see the country looking green and the weather is cool. In Nairobi the rains are not as much as it is in other towns (may be more is coming), other areas I know of in the Rift Valley and Western Kenya got their rains earlier than Nairobi. Most people started preparing their land for planting before the rains came and even put seeds in the soil before the rains dropped.
In Nairobi many people have small pieces of land where they have bought/rented houses or built their homes. One interesting thing with us Kenyans is however small a plot or land is, we will always find something to plant on it, Sukuma Wiki (Kales), spinach, onions, tomatoes, beans and even maize. Those in the slums with no space to plant on have learnt to plant on sacks. Traveling from the city center going to the estates, one would notice some people cultivate idle space near railway lines, highways. These are government land so they know no one will come asking. It’s good the dreaded City Council Askaris (Kanjo) have not arrested them for trespassing.
So long as they are not interfering with people’s plots or the City center and its environs, this type of farming should be encouraged by the government as a way of improving food production in Kenya. The Government should encourage Kenyans who love farming by distributing the vast idle and grabbed land all over the country for farming only. I believe this way we will never be affected by food shortage like it has been in the past.
