Perception of Microgardens in Dakar, Senegal

Abstract

Promoting sustainable urban food systems through edible urban landscape promotion is a matter of policy and planning. Development Cooperation (DC) providers and local institutions all around the world are now converging on urban food and greening strategies. The role of urban greening and more precisely of Urban and Periurban Agriculture (UPA) in implementing sustainable food systems in developing countries is widely recognized. Microgardens (MGs), which are a specific typology of UPA, are small-scale urban gardens using different techniques, adapted to the local context, such as organic vegetable gardening, etc. The peculiar characteristic of MGs approach is the focus on sustainable recycling materials as productive inputs such as containers or growth mediums. The present study aims to investigate the consumers’ perception of the MGs’ supply chain, to better analyse MGs in the city and to give suggestions to urban policy makers and DC providers. The analysis was carried on by direct survey on 671 respondents, in the city of Dakar in Senegal. The study is based on a Multiple Correspondence Analysis (MCA) followed by a Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (HCA). Results suggest that UPA's direct experience, meaning in this case the fact of knowing MGs, leads to greater degree of approval, a positive perception of MGs’ market and may lead to greater DC intervention impact.