Greening West African Soils

The path to achieving a resilient agri-food sector to enhance food and nutrition security (FNS) stands at a crossroad in the West Africa region. Home to over 400 million people, the region faces significant challenges in agricultural productivity and food security. Despite its vast agricultural potential, the region struggles with declining soil fertility, climate change, and socio-economic challenges that threaten food production. A recent PROGREEN¹ financed study on soil health and fertility (SHF) sheds light on these issues and proposes a roadmap for transforming soil management practices to enhance agricultural productivity, strengthen landscape resilience, and secure long-term FNS in the region.

The Soil Health Challenge

With more than 30% of the region’s GDP coming from agriculture and more than 55% of its population living in rural areas, West Africa is unquestionably a region where SHF is critical and worthy of attention. Yet, West African soils are inherently poor in fertility, highly weathered, and degraded. Years of nutrient mining and limited organic and inorganic resupply have taken their toll. This poses adverse economic consequences for the region. For instance,

• Over 80% of Africa’s agricultural lands are degraded, having either biophysical or chemical constraints that limit food production.
• Soil degradation affects millions of livelihoods and costs the region billions in food imports annually.
• Sub-Sahara Africa loses over $4 billion worth of soil nutrients each year.

Mapping Soil Suitability for Agriculture in the region

The soil suitability map of West Africa reveals a stark contrast in land quality across the region. The map classifies soil suitability into six categories, ranging from highly suitable (S1) to permanently not suitable (N3). The Sahel emerges as the least suitable area, plagued by low rainfall and high evaporation, leading to widespread desertification. This comprehensive assessment enables the optimization of agricultural productivity and sustainable land use planning in West Africa. The map highlights the urgent need for targeted interventions in less suitable areas to improve soil quality and combat desertification.

Soil suitability of West Africa

Climate Change: A Growing Threat

The stakes are even higher when considering climate change. The Sahel and tropical West Africa are climate change hotspots, with rising temperatures and more frequent extreme weather events projected as early as 2040. These changes are already impacting agricultural output, exacerbating food insecurity in the region. Healthy soils contribute to climate adaptation by retaining more water, improving resilience against droughts and erratic rainfall. They also play a critical role in climate mitigation, serving as carbon sinks by sequestering atmospheric CO2.

A Paradigm for Soil Health and for Transforming Agriculture

The SHF study advocates Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM) as one of the transformative solutions through:  

Enhancing Agricultural Productivity:

• Combines organic and inorganic inputs to ensure nutrient availability and structure, supporting sustained crop growth and higher yields.
• Promotes conservation agriculture practices, which protect against erosion, enhance water retention, and maintain soil biodiversity.

Building Climate Resilience:

• Supports climate adaptation by enhancing farmers’ resilience to climate hazards.
• Contributes to improved household food security by improving agricultural productivity and food availability.

Climate Mitigation:

Healthy soils can sequester nearly 4 billion tons of CO2eq per year globally, of which nearly 200 million tons is from countries in West Africa.

The Way Forward: From Policy to Action

Transforming agricultural practices in the West Africa region demands collaboration, innovation, and well-directed policies. Key steps include: 

Leveraging Local Fertilizer Production:

The region’s abundant mineral and hydrocarbon reserves could support local fertilizer manufacturing, reducing the burden of expensive imports.

Implementing the ECOWAS Fertilizer and Soil-Health Roadmap:

• Foster multi-stakeholder partnerships to deliver bundled services under the ISFM framework.
• Target interventions at regional, farm, and value chain levels under site-specific assessments for optimized fertilizer use.

Building on Continental Initiatives:

• The 2024 Nairobi Fertilizer and Soil Health Summit introduced new targets, with an ambition to restore soil health on 30% of degraded lands by 2033.
• The Soil Initiative for Africa (SIA) advances commitments to reverse land degradation and promote sustainable agricultural practices.

Adopting Innovative Solutions with Private Sector Participation:

• Tools like the AKILIMO Portal for ISFM scaling.
• Nature-based interventions such as agroforestry, ecosystem restoration, and alternative fertilizers.
• Advanced techniques, including soil mapping, monitoring, and tailored rehabilitation practices.

In summary, greening West African soils is not just about improving agricultural productivity; it’s about transforming the entire agri-food system to be more resilient, sustainable, and equitable. By adopting an integrated approach that combines innovative technologies, supportive policies, and strategic investments, West Africa can unlock its agricultural potential and pave the way for a food-secure future.

The journey to green West African soils is complex but achievable. It requires concerted efforts from governments, international organizations, the private sector, and farmers. With the right strategies and investments, West Africa can turn its soil health challenges into opportunities for growth, resilience, and prosperity.

Source: blogs.worldbank.org