The results also indicate that food production is only one of several livelihood strategies used by urban households. The critical issue of access to land for food production is brought to the forefront as the assumption that there will be abundant open space land in Nairobi for many years to come is challenged. The practices of urban food producers provide a useful entry point for the examination of producer decision making. Practices are in fact decisions which have been implemented and that they are a reflection of the complexity of the decision making process. Relatives and friends help urban food producers with seeds and money during the early stages of food production.
Few producers receive labour assistance from relatives or friends in the fields.
Kibera producers must rely in large part on their own labour. Close ties with family in rural areas are maintained through gifts of food and cash. Interestingly, there is a net flow of food and money from Kibera to rural areas. Although Kibera producers are primarily engaged in subsistence production, they sometimes have surplus produce for sale or have crops which are grown specifically for sale. The revenues derived from these sales are used to buy food and meet other basic needs.