Abstract:
Remote sensing and geospatial technologies are instrumental in identifying, mapping and quantifying changes in
valuable resources like croplands. Cropland maps are important in crop monitoring, food security, land planning and
management. However, Kitui Central Sub-County has limited cropland maps. This study, therefore, aimed at
detecting and quantifying the changes in cropland in Kitui Central Sub-County from 1986 to 2019 using
multispectral data obtained from Landsat archives. Cropland, built-up areas, bushland, grassland and water bodies
were identified as the main land cover classes in the study area through a reconnaissance study done before the land
use and land cover classification. Supervised classification was performed using the Maximum Likelihood Classifier
algorithm to map land use and land cover classes of 1986, 2001, 2011 and 2019. Change detection analysis was then
performed using post-classification comparison method in order to identify the changes in cropland over the period
of study. The results showed that there was an increase in cropland area from 185.23 km2 in 1986 to 327.28 km2 in
2001. This was followed by a decrease to 231.15 km2 in 2011 and a rise to 357.37 km2 in 2019. Knowledge of such
trends in cropland can be used by agricultural resource managers in sustainable agriculture to manage croplands and
boost food production and security in Kitui Central.
