Coming from the Africa Climate Summit which hosted over 20 Heads of State from Africa, tens of other influential global leaders, and over 20,000 delegates, Kenya ripped big in terms of global brand visibility and PR.

However, many Kenyans simply watched the excitement of the week’s events unfold nonchalantly without any personal commitments to write home about. At the end of the day, the same Kenyans retreated to the comfort of their homes subconsciously resetting back to their retrogressive default lifestyles.

The one glaring phenomenon that by and large impacts Kenya’s sustainability as a nation is our land use.

When you visit a new country, the first thing that grabs your attention is the residential and commercial buildings. What also catches your attention, especially in the developed world is the rich lands set aside for large-scale commercial agriculture with wide green spaces. In the third world like Kenya, the trend is different. We tend to be racing to subdivide every available land for tiny residential and commercial use.

In the face of Kenya’s rapid urbanisation and population growth, it is high time we reevaluate our approach to land use. The prevailing trend of subdividing land into 50 by 100 meters properties, while appearing to meet current housing demands for the middle class, is a short-sighted approach that jeopardises our long-term sustainability that largely depends on agriculture to develop.

As documented in both Vision 2030 and the famous Sessional Paper number 10 before it, Kenya largely depends on a thriving agrarian economy to flourish. Agribusiness is the opportunity cost lost when the rich buy fertile lands and sub-divide them for quick profits through sales to the middle class.

If we are to pick anything from the Africa Climate Summit, this should be one of them – push for an optimal balance of sustainable urban cities and large-scale agriculture. This is the time for a shift towards commercial farming as an essential element of sustainable land-use strategy. Sustainable development is not merely about erecting housing units; it also encompasses responsible resource management and preserving our environment for future generations.

By continuing to convert fertile agricultural land into small residential plots, we risk undermining our ability to feed our growing population. It is crucial that we prioritise preserving land for farming to ensure food security. However, as cities expand, arable land is lost, leading to a decrease in food production.

At a time when many are reeling from the pinch of escalating costs of living, it is not too late to seek innovative approaches including incorporating commercial farming into housing projects.

By allocating portions of housing developments to commercial farming, we can create a more harmonious balance between the needs of a growing urban population and agricultural sustainability even in the cities. Imagine housing complexes where rooftop gardens provide fresh produce or apartment buildings with communal vegetable gardens. Such initiatives not only promote self-sufficiency but also reduce the carbon footprint associated with food transportation in the spirit of global efforts to combat climate change.

If we persist on the current capitalist trend of prioritising residential development over agriculture, we risk finding ourselves in good homes but facing food shortages.

This is a paradox we must avoid at all costs. We need to adopt a more holistic perspective that balances the needs of our economy, environment, and society.

With the Africa Climate Summit fresh on our minds, the time is ripe for Kenya to rethink its land-use policies and embrace large-scale commercial farming as a crucial component of sustainable development. By doing so, we can ensure a future where our people have decent housing and abundant, locally-produced food while preserving our environment for generations.

— The writer is the marketing and corporate Communication Manager, KenGen PLC