The role of urban parks and socio-economic development: Case study of Kisumu Kenya

Abstract

Urban parks are now viewed as an important part of the broader structure of urban and neighborhood development rather than just recreation and leisure facilities. While most of the world has recognized the multifunctional use of urban parks for development; the parks in Kenya and Kisumu Township in particular are suffering from lack of attention, poor maintenance, lack of development and underutilization. Also evident in most parks of Kisumu Township is lack of activities and basic utilities like public toilets, litterbins, benches and notice boards. The stakeholders of Kisumu Town do not seem to realize that parks can contribute to enormous social, cultural and economic development of the poverty stricken region. The aim of the study was to assess the utilization, investigate the benefits and analyze the factors influencing use of urban parks in Kisumu. Descriptive, cross-section research design was used where multistage cluster sampling technique was applied in sampling households and park users within seven wards of Kisumu Township and seven urban parks respectively. The study indicates that the poor maintenance and lack of adequate facilities had hindered optimal social, economical, environmental and educational benefits of the parks.