Desertification Control in Niger: The Medium Term Action Plan 2006–2011 - Combating Desertification in Asia, Africa and the Middle East - page 188

Table 10.1 Issues relating to desertification in the drylands of Niger

The issues Causes

Drought Climatic variations

Low soil water holding capacity

Inherent low soil fertility/declining soil
fertility

Low soil organic matter levels of the drylands
Cultivation of marginal lands
Population pressure in reduced/eliminated fallow
period
Land tenure problems

Inadequate feed and fodder for livestock Livestock population in excess of the carrying

capacity of the rangelands
Increasing migration of livestock from neighboring
countries Chad, Nigeria and Burkina Farso
Encroachment of crop cultivation into designated
livestock routes and grazing reserves

Depletion of water resources (surface
and groundwater)

Damming of rivers, thus depriving downstream users
of access to water
Increasing human and livestock population
Increasing demand caused by increasing
urbanization and industrialization

Low forest cover Excessive wood extraction for fuel construction

(lumber)
Bush burning
Uncontrolled land clearing for agricultural purposes

Legislative framework Low level of education and public awareness

Conflicting policies and regulations
Poor enforcement mechanism

Inadequate capacity Uncoordinated research efforts on problems relating

to drought and desertification
Obsolete research and meteorological equipment
Low and erratic funding for desertification control
projects

Coordination of activities Sectoral approach to project planning formulation

and implementation
Insufficient involvement of all stakeholders,
particularly resource-users, in project planning,
formulation and implementation

About 2,500 km 2 , are being lost each year in Niger through desertification. This
is equivalent to the area of Luxembourg. Studies carried out in the 1980 estimated
the natural forestry potential at 16 Mha with a very low productivity of between
0.1 and 1.5 m 3 /ha/year. The forestry structures exploited for wood-energy (about 4
Mha) provide around 90 % of the needs, that is to say three million tons per year. The
“wood-energy assessment” established in the late 1990s indicated that some regions
of the country are already in deficit. The problem of wood supply is particularly