Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Kasarani Division. It borders the Kiambu district, which is in the central
province of Kenya. Kamae, like Nairobi City, has a bimodal rainfall pattern.
The long rainy season is from April to August, while the short rainy season is
from late October to early December. Kamae has a total of 2036 households
and a population of 9847 persons according to the 1999 Population Census
(Government of Kenya, 1999).
Data were analysed to identify the food production and food and
nutrition security problems. Those that were given first priority during focus-
group discussions were lack of agricultural and nutrition knowledge, as well
as inadequate supplies of clean, safe water. The action plan included offering
education in agriculture and nutrition by the ocers from the Ministry of
Agriculture and Livestock and the Ministry of Fisheries Development, as well
as from the researcher. Project participants each contributed approximately
US$58 for the provision of water. The researcher, with support from the
International Development Research Centre (IDRC), provided fencing
materials, seeds and seedlings, as well as small livestock. An evaluation was
done through a survey to ascertain the impact of the project.
Sample size
Three hundred households were studied during the baseline survey for
situation assessment.
To obtain a representative sample, Fisher's formula was employed (Fisher
et al, 1998). That is:
n
1
þð
n
N
Þ
nf
¼
ð
1
:
1
Þ
where nf is the desired sample when the population is less than 10,000; n is the
sample
2
when the total population is more than 10,000; and N is the estimated
population of the households in Kamae area (2036). Therefore, the sample
consisted of 323 households:
384
1
þð
384
2036
Þ
¼
323
nf
¼
ð
1
:
2
Þ
However, for the purpose of this study, this figure was rounded down to the
nearest hundred, that is, to 300 households. Cluster sampling was employed
during the baseline survey to obtain these. Every respondent was interviewed
in those households within the selected cluster that contained a child below
five years of age. For the sample related to the household interventions, 10 per
cent of the 300 households (30) were selected randomly.
Three focus group discussions took place during the baseline survey,
consisting of ten participants each, where one group consisted of men, one of
women and one of youth. There was one focus group discussion during the
evaluation consisting of those who were in the intervention project.
Observations were made for the 300 households during baseline survey,
whereas the evaluation survey included the 30 homes where interventions took
