URBAN EXPANSION, PERI –URBAN DEVELOPMENT AND ITS EFFECT ON LOCAL LIVELIHOODS: THE CASE OF GONDAR CITY, IN ETHIOPIA

Abstract

Over the past few decades, peri-urban areas worldwide have been affected by the growing demand for natural resources by cities, threatening millions of people living at the peri-urban interface. However, the implications of rapid urban expansion on the livelihood of farming community are not fully understood. This study is aimed at examining the status of urban expansion, peri-urban development and its effect on local livelihoods, taking the case of Gondar City in Ethiopia. The study employs a mixed research approach using both qualitative and quantitative data obtained from primary and secondary sources. Primary data was obtained from field observation, questionnaires and focus group discussion. Field data, and information was collect from household head in Gondar city specifically in Aezo Tesda sub city Kebele are consider target area the effects of urban expansion on the per-urban community. Secondary data was collect from published and unpublished documents including annual, monthly reports country and internet sources which were relevant to the situation of urban expansion like Landsat image and the livelihood change problems of surrounding farmers. The data were analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively using different analysis tools. The results show that there was a substantial built-up area increment in the study area between 2000-2010 and 2010-2020. Similarly, cropland has shown slight increment over the same period Substantial increments in built-up area and cropland coverage between 2000 and 2020 were found to be the reason for vegetation cover and open area reductions. This implies that major changes in the socio-ecological driving forces affecting landscape dynamics have occurred in the last few decades. And also vegetation cover and open area have decreased between 2000 and 2020 in the study area. The results also show that population increase, geographic proximity and suitable topography were regarded as the three most dominant pulling factors that intensified urban expansion, respectively. The study area result showed that the livelihood of pre-urban community has been exposed following the relocation to the selected sub city. The perception of the displaced farming community towards Urban expansion the socio economic result like gender, age, tropical livestock unit, land size, off farm income, and access to credit showed that has significant influence at 0.05 sign levels. The results also show that age of household and land size has negative relationship with urban expansion effect on peri-urban community. The findings from this study show that appropriate planning policy needs to be devised in order to protect agriculture land not only agriculture land other exposed resources also at the peri-urban areas and ensure that the local communities benefit from the urban development. I mention that the existing valuation and compensation laws should need to be recovering, increasing and generating both formal and informal types of education for enhancing farmer’s attitude towards livelihood strategy.