Urban Sprawl’s Impact on Land Use in Kenya: A Systematic Review of Literature

Abstract

Urban growth is essential in bringing in new opportunities and a larger labour force, but when it is unconventional and unregulated, it tends to raise new threats and problems in the community and the environment. This urban sprawl phenomenon and its impact on land use need to be explored deeply for comprehensive planning and development. Therefore, it is important to analyse existing evidence related to urban sprawl impacts on land use. In this study, existing knowledge on the impact of urban sprawl on land use in Kenya is described through a systematic literature review. The specific objectives of the review were to assess the general characteristics of studies on urban sprawl impact on land use in Kenya, synthesise the findings of these studies, and highlight the gaps in the studies. A search was conducted on the Google Scholar engine, leading to 4317 results from which 21 articles were selected through a systematic screening process. The review established that the majority of the studies are recent, having been published in the last 10 years, have utilised the quantitative approach, and have been conducted in diverse urban centres in Kenya. The findings of the studies revealed that diminishing agricultural land is the most prominent consequence of urban sprawl. The research found that urban sprawl is taking much of the available agricultural land due to increased demand for housing and the creation of new non-farm economic activities. This phenomenon has threatened to cause food shortages, reduced agricultural exports, hence reduced foreign exchange, and lost job opportunities in the agricultural sector. Another impact of urban sprawl is the decline of conservation areas, including bare land, forests, bushlands, and wetlands. Replacement of land under natural cover with built cover has dire consequences for human life and the ecosystem, including increased cases of floods and soil erosion. The results of this study provide insights that can be used to formulate policies related to urban planning, agriculture, and conservation.