Soil Fertility decline: Danger for food security

Abstract

Soil fertility management issues are at the centre of debates on the sustainability of agricultural production systems in Africa, particularly in West Africa where farmers are concerned with decline of soil fertility1. This decline of soil fertility markedly accounts for the low agricultural productivity and this is perceived to be widespread in the highland soils of the tropics, particularly in west Africa. One of the reasons for this low productivity is the extraction of nutrients by continuous cropping with low external nutrient supply, resulting in declining soil fertility3. Soil fertility is a function of many soil properties, many of which are interrelated. However, in most cases, the term ‘soil fertility’ describes the current state of the soil, which means that soil fertility is a combination of the current soil quality (chemical & physical composition). Soil fertility decline includes nutrient depletion (more nutrients removed than added), nutrient mining (high nutrient removal and no nutrient addition), acidification (lowering of pH)4, loss of organic matter. Côte d’Ivoire is facing a continuous decline in soil fertility resulting in stagnant or declining cotton yields5. Soil fertility degradation through nutrient depletion, mainly by erosion and/or crop removal, is one of the threats facing agricultural systems in Cote d’Ivoire.