Deserts and Desertification in Three North African Countries - Combating Desertification in Asia, Africa and the Middle East - page 70

Part II
Deserts and Desertification in Three North
African Countries
The three chapters in this part deal with deserts and desertification in North Africa
with examples from Egypt, Libya, Morocco and Egypt.
North Africa has a Mediterranean climate with hot dry summers and cool wet
winters. Large areas of each of the three countries is classified as desert. The land
use is governed by water availability. Successful cropping in Egypt and parts of
Libya is almost totally reliant on irrigation. Land degradation in the form of water
logging and salinity are common problems in irrigated croplands. Rain fed farming
prevails over much of Morocco and parts of Libya. Soil loss from wind and water
erosion and overgrazing of the steppes by livestock are common immediate causes
of desertification.