Barriers and Adaptations To Rural-Urban Mobility: A Focus of the Milk Value Chain in Peri-Urban Nairobi, Kenya
Kenya has per capita milk consumption of 110 litters of milk per year, making the inhabitants the largest milk consumers in sub-Saharan Africa. The daily sector requires functional infrastructure adapted to weather conditions, as well as affordable and easily accessible means of transport. However, only 18% of Kenya's road network is considered to be in good condition . As a result, farmers take alternative routes, reduce the number of trips, or limit their sales to the urban periphery. The daily transport of milk along the 47-kilometer urban-rural continuum in the peri-urban area north of Nairobi illustrates the reciprocal links between urban and rural areas and the dynamics of peri-urbanization. The challenges of the flow of milk along the value chain are intrinsically linked to those of mobility, which creates the connection between production, the exchange of goods and services, and consumption.
This note from Ifri, based on empirical data collected in Kiambu County, Kenya, between 2017 and 2021, explores how mobility — that goes beyond physical infrastructure —also faces social and political barriers. How does the use of matatus (mini-buses) by women milk vendors, instead of motorcycles deemed "unfeminine," affect their mobility? How does the strict regulation of the dairy sector lead to more bribery and harassment, driving up transport costs? and how do issues of affordability lead to exclusion of the poorest farmers? By circumventing these physical, social, and political obstacles, stakeholders in the milk value chain alter their trajectories and contribute to the transformation of peri-urban spaces. They also abandon certain routes and locations, which impacts the development of rural zones. Thus, studying urban-rural linkages through a perishable commodity like milk provides insights into urbanization dynamics, enables the mapping of invested versus neglected spaces, and reveals adaptation strategies to overcome mobility challenges.
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Barriers and Adaptations To Rural-Urban Mobility: A Focus of the Milk Value Chain in Peri-Urban Nairobi, Kenya
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