The term “replenishment” is often misleading, as it suggests that soils are poor through depletion by farmers and that soils should be restored to their original state for agricultural production. This philosophy created awareness of the problems confronted by African farmers. It neglects, however, the heterogeneous redistribution of nutrients that is inherent to agricultural land use. Active and passive transport of organic matter causes centripetal concentration of nutrients around farms and villages and maintains or even improves the soil fertility of crucial fields at the cost of surrounding land. The advice to use fertilizers on bush fields in view of the use of compost and manure on compound fields is like “putting the cart before the horse”; the value-cost ratio of using inorganic fertilizer on compound fields is higher than that on bush fields because of the negative organic matter and nutrient balances in bush fields. The integrated use of inorganic fertilizers and organic forms of manure triggers a positive spiral of improved nutrient-use efficiency and improved soil organic matter status. The increase in value-cost ratio of fertilizer use improves access to fertilizer and other external inputs. Where crop- livestock integration is an important component of agricultural intensification, the centripetal concentration can even turn into the opposite; a centrifugal transport that replenishes (planned or unplanned) the depleted surroundings of farms and villages. Active replenishment of depleted soils is no requirement for agricultural development; intensification can start on village fields where fertility is maintained or improved. However, public investment in soils, focusing on reinforcement of the positive effects of the centripetal concentration of organic matter and nutrients, is recommended; it enables farmers to start fertilizer use where even if the compound fields at present do not allow it.
Keywords
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsPreview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Bakker, E. J., Quak, W., Sissoko, K., Moh, S. M. T., & Hengsdijk H. (1998). Vers une agriculture durable. In H. Breman & K. Sissoko (Eds.), L’intensification agricole au Sahel (pp.125–141). Paris: KARTHALA.
Bieleman, J. (1987). Boeren op het Drentse zand, 1600–1910. Een nieuwe visie op de oude landbouw. Utrecht, The Netherlands: H&S Uitgevers.
Binswanger, H., & Pingali, P. (1988). Technological priorities for farming in sub-Saharan Africa. World Bank Research Observations, 3, 81–98.
Breman, H. (1990). No sustainability without external inputs. In Beyond adjustment. Africa seminar, Maastricht, the Netherlands (pp.124–133). Den Haag: Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Breman, H. (1998). Soil fertility improvement in Africa, a tool for or a by-product of sustainable production? Special Issue on Soil Fertility. African Fertilizer Market, 11(5), 2–10.
Breman, H. (2000). Sustainable agricultural intensification in Africa: The role of capital. Lecture African Development Bank, June 6th, Abidjan. Lome: Internal Report IFDC-Africa.
Breman, H. (2002). Soil fertility and farmers’ revenue: Keys to desertification control. In H. Shimizu (Ed.), Integration and regional researches to combat desertification; present state and future prospect (pp. 26–41). Tsukuba, Japan: The 16th Global Environment Tsukuba. CGER/NIES.
Breman, H. & Sissoko, K. (Eds.) (1998). L’intensification agricole au Sahel. Paris: KARTHALA.
Breman, H., & Reuler, H. van (2002). Legumes, when and where an option? No panacea for poor tropical West African soils and expensive fertilizers. In B. Vanlauwe, J. Diels, N. Sanginga, & R. Merckx (Eds.), Integrated plant nutrient management in sub-Saharan Africa (pp. 285–298). Wallingford, UK: CABI.
Breman, H., & Debrah, S. K. (2003). Improving African food security. SAIS, 23(1), 153–170.
Breman, H., Ketelaars, J. J. M. H., & Traoré, N. (1990). Un remède contre le manque de terre? Bilan des éléments nutritifs, production primaire et élevage au Sahel. Sécheresse, 2, 109–117.
Breman, H., Gakou, A., Mando, A., & Wopereis, M. C. S. (2004). Enhancing integrated soil fertility management through the Carbon Market to combat resource degradation in overpopulated Sahelian countries. Proceedings of Regional Scientific Workshop on Land Management for Carbon Sequestration. Bamako (Mali), February 27–28 (2004). Organized by the Carbon from Communities project and funded by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration. IER (Bamako), NASA and Soil Management CRSP, USA. CD-Rom NASA.
Breman, H., Wopereis, M. C. S., Maatman, A., Hellums, D., Chien, S. H., & Bowen, W. (2003). Food security and economic development in sub-Saharan Africa: Investments in soils or in irrigation? Presentation AEPS workshop, USAID, September 22–26, Rosebank (South Africa). Internal report IFDC, Lomé.
Buresh, R. J., Sanchez, P. A., & Calhoun, F. (Eds.) (1997). Replenishing soil fertility in Africa. SSSA Special Publication No. 51, SSSA, Nairobi: Medison and ICRAF.
Cissé, L. (1986). Etude des effets d’apports de matière organique sur les bilans hydriques et minéraux et la production du mil et de l’arachide sur un sol sableux dégradé du Centre-Nord du Sénégal. Thèse de Doctorat.
Cour, J. M. (2001). The Sahel in West Africa: Countries in transition to a full market economy. Global Environmental Change, 11, 31–47.
Duivenbooden, van, N. (1992). Sustainability in terms of nutrient elements with special reference to West-Africa. Cabo-Dlo, Report Wageningen, The Netherlands 160. 261 pp.
Fofana, B., Breman, H., Carsky, R. J., Reuler, H. van, Tamélokpo, A. F., & Gnakpenou, K. D. (2004). Using mucuna and P fertilizer to increase maize grain yield and N fertilizer use efficiency in the coastal savannah of Togo. Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems, 68, 213–222.
Fofana, B., Tamélokpo, A. F., Wopereis, M. C. S., Breman, H., Dzotsi, K., & Carsky, R. J. (2004). Nitrogen use efficiency by maize as affected by a mucuna short fallow and P application in the coastal savanna of West Africa. Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems, 69, 1–10.
Fofana, B., Wopereis, M. C. S., Bationo, A., Breman, H., Tamélokpo, A. F., Gnakpénou, K. D., Ezui, K., Zida, Z., & Mando, A. (in press). Millet nutrient use efficiency as affected by inherent soil fertility in the West African Sahel.
Garin, P., Faye, A., Lericollais, A., & Sissokho, M. (1990). Evolution du rôle du bétail dans la gestion de la fertilité des terroirs Sereer au Sénégal. Les Cahiers de Recherche Développement, 26, 65–94.
Grandi, J. C. de (1996). L’évolution des systèmes de production agropastorale par rapport au développement rural durable dans les pays d’Afrique soudano–sahélienne. Collection FAO: Gestion des exploitations agricoles no. 11. Rome: FAO.
Greene, L. W., & Cole, N. C. (2006). Feedlot nutrient management impacts efficiency and environmental quality. Available at http://www.admani.com/alliancebeef/TechnicalEdge/FeedlotNutrientManagement.htm.
Haileslassie, A. (2005). Soil nutrient balance at different spatial scales: examining soil fertility management and sustainability of mixed farming systems in Ethiopia. Dissertation. Gottingen, Germany: University of Goettingen, Cuvillier Verlag.
Henao, J. & Baanante, C. (1999). Estimation rates of nutrient depletion in soils of agricultural lands of Africa. Technical Bulletin IFDC-T-48. Muscle Shoals: IFDC.
Henao, J. & C. Baanante, C. (in press). Agricultural production and soil nutrient mining in Africa: Implications for resource conservation and policy development. Paper-R7. Muscle Shoals, AL: IFDC.
Henkens, Ch. H. (1975). Brengt de gangbare landbouw schade toe aan bodemvruchtbaarheid? Bedrijfsontwikkeling, 6(3), 207–214.
Hilhorst, T., & Muchena, F. (Eds.) (2000). Nutrients on the move. Soil fertility dynamics in African farming systems. London: IIED.
IFDC. (2002). Collaborative research programme for soil fertility restoration and management in resource-poor areas of sub-Saharan Africa. IFDC-Africa (Lomé); TSBF (Nairobi) and ACFD (Harare), supported by IFAD (Rome). Technical Bulletin IFDC-T-67. Muscle Shoals, AL: IFDC.
IFDC. (2004). The integrated soil fertility management project. IFDC-Africa (Togo), DGIS, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (The Netherlands), IFAD (Rome), IFA (Paris) and USAID (Washington). Muscle Shoals, AL: IFDC.
IFDC. (2005). Development and dissemination of sustainable integrated soil fertility management practices for small holder farms in sub-Saharan Africa. IFAD Technical Assistance Grant no. R535, Final Report. TSBF Institute of CIAT, Nairobi and IFDC-Africa, Lomé.
Janssen, B. H., Guiking, F. C. T., van der Eijk, D., Smaling, E. M. A., Wolf, J. & van Reuler, H. (1990). A system for quantitative evaluation of the fertility of tropical soils (QUEFTS). Geoderma, 46, 299–318.
Kelly, V., Jayne, T., & Crawford, E. (2005). Farmers’ demand for fertilizer in Sub-Saharan Africa. Draft paper prepared for the World Bank by the Dept. of Agric. Economics, East Lansing: Michigan State University. Available at www.nrinternational.co.uk/uploads/documents/BP2VALPg360205.pdf .
Ketelaars, J. J. M. H. (1991). La production animale. In H. Breman & N. de Ridder (Eds.), Manuel sur les pâturages des pays sahéliens (pp.357–389). Paris: ACCT, Paris: CTA, Wageningen, The Netherlands: KARTHALA.
Keulen, H. van, & Breman, H. (1990). Agricultural development in the West African Sahelian region: A cure against land hunger? Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 32, 177–197.
Krul, J. M., Penning de Vries, F. W. T., Stroosnijder, L., & Pol, F. van der (1982). Le phosphor dans le sol et son accessibilité aux plantes. In F. W. T. Penning de Vries & M. A. Djitèye (Eds.), La productivité des pâturages sahéliens. Une étude des sols, des végétations et de l’exploitation de cette ressource naturelle (pp.246–283). Agricultural Research Report 918, PUDOC, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
Lekasi, J. K., & Kimani, S. K. (2005). Livestock management and manure quality. In C. E. N. Saval, M. N. Omare & P. L. Woomer (Eds.), Organic resource management in Kenya. Perspectives and guidelines, Chapter 2. Available at www.formatkenya.org.
Leloup, S. (1994). Multiple use of rangelands within agropastoral systems in southern Mali. Ph.D. thesis, Wageningen, The Netherlands: Agricultural University Wageningen.
López-Ridaura, S. (2005). Multi-scale sustainability evaluation. A framework for the derivation and quantification of indicators for natural resource management systems. Ph.D. Thesis, Wageningen, The Netherlands: Wageningen University.
Mazoyer, M., & Roudart, L. (1998). Histoire des agricultures du monde du Néolithique à la crise contemporaine. du SEUIL (Eds.), Paris.
Mazzucato, V., & Niemeijer, D. (2000). Rethinking soil and water conservation in a changing society: A case study in eastern Burkina Faso. Tropical Resource Management Paper 32, Wageningen, The Netherlands: Wageningen University and Research Center.
Meertens, B. (2005). A realistic view on increasing fertilizer use in sub-Saharan Africa. Available at www.meertensconsult@hetnet.nl.
MINECOFIN (2003). Rwanda development indicators. Statistics Department, Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning. Kigali, Rwanda: Pallotti Presse.
Palm, C. A., Gachengo, C. N., Delve, R. J., Cardish, R. J., & Giller, K. E. (2001). Organic inputs for soil fertility management in tropical agroecosystems. Application of an organic resource database. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, Special Issue 71, 255–267.
Penning de Vries, F. W. T., & Djitèye, M. A. (Eds.) (1982). La productivité des pâturages sahéliens. Une étude des sols, des végétations et de l’exploitation de cette ressource naturelle. Agricultural Research Report 918. Wageningen, The Netherlands: PUDOC.
Pieri, C. (1989). Fertilité des terres de savanes. Bilan de trente ans de recherche et de développement agricol au Sud du Sahara. Montpellier, France: Min.de la Coopération et CIRAD-IRAT.
Pol, F. van der (1992). Soil mining: An unseen contributor to farm income in Southern Mali. Bulletin 325, Amsterdam: Royal Tropical Institute (KIT).
Quak, W., Hengdijk, H., Touré, M. S. H., Sissoko, K., Camara, O., Dembélé, N. F., & Bakker, E. J. (1998). Activités de production agricole durable. In H. Breman & K. Sissoko (Eds.) (1998). Intensification agricole au Sahel (pp.539–561). Paris: KARTHALA.
Ramisch, J. J. (2005). Inequality, agro-pastoral exchanges, and soil fertility gradients in southern Mali. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 105, 353–372.
Ridder, N. de, Breman, H., Keulen, H. van & Stomph, T. J. (2004). Revisiting a ‘cure against landhunger’: Soil fertility management and farming systems dynamics in the West African Sahel. Agricultural Systems, 80, 109–131.
Ridder, N. De., & Keulen, H. van (1990). Some aspects of the role of organic matter in sustainable intensified arable farming systems in the West African semi-arid tropics (SAT). Fertilizer Research, 26, 299–310.
Ridder, N. de, & Slingerland, M. (2001). Reflections on interventions by land users in Sahelian villages. In L. Stroosnijder & T. van Rheenen (Eds.), Agro-silvo-pastoral land use in Sahelian villages. Advances in Geoecology, 33, 297–302.
Smaling, E., Toure, M., Ridder, M, N. de, Sanginga, N., & Breman, H. (in press). Fertilizer use and the environment in Africa: Friends or foes? Background paper presented for the African Fertilizer Summit 9–13th June (2006), Abuja, Nigeria. NEPAD, Johannesburg/IFDC, Muscle Shoals. Proceedings Africa Fertilizer Summit.
Turner, M. (1995). The sustainability of crop-livestock systems in sub-Sahara Africa: Ecological and social dimensions neglected in the debate. In J. M. Powell, S. Fernández-Rivera, T. O. Williams & C. Renard (Eds.), Livestock and sustainable nutrient cycling in mixed farming systems of sub-Saharan Africa (pp. 435–452). Vol. II. Technical papers. Proceedings of an international conference. 22–26 November 1993. Addis Ababa: ILCA.
Samaké O. (2003). Integrated crop management strategies in Sahelian land use systems to improve agricultural productivity and sustainability: A case study in Mali. Tropical Resource Management Papers 47. Wageningen, The Netherlands: Wageningen University and Research Center.
Savadogo, M. (2000). Crop residue management in relation to sustainable land use. A case study in Burkina Faso. Tropical Resource Management Papers 31. Wageningen, The Netherlands: Wageningen University and Research Center.
Schreurs, M. E. A., Maatman, A. & Dangbégnon, C. (2002). In for a penny in for a pound. Strategic site-selection and on-farm client-oriented research to trigger sustainable agricultural intensification. In B. Vanlauwe et al. (Eds.), Integrated plant nutrient management in sub-Saharan Africa (pp. 63–94). Wallingford, UK: CABI.
Sissoko, K. (1998). Et demain l’agriculture? Options techniques et mesures politiques pour un développement agricole durable en Afrique subsaharienne. Cas du Cercle de Koutiala en zone sud du Mali. Tropical resource management papers 23. Wageningen, The Netherlands: Université Agronomique Wageningen.
Slicher van Bath, B. (1960). De agrarische geschiedenis van West-Europa 500–1850. Aula 565. Utrecht, Germany: Het Spectrum.
Stoorvogel, J. J., & Smaling, E. M. A. (1990). Assessment of soil nutrient depletion in sub-Saharan Africa, 1983–2000. Report 28, Vol. 1. Wageningen, The Netherlands: Winand Staring Centre (SC-DLO).
Stroosnijder, L., & Rheenen, T. van (Eds.) (2001). Agro-silvo-astoral land use in Sahelian villages. Advances in Geoecology, 33.
Tiffen, M., Mortimore, M., & Guchuki, F. (1994). More people, less erosion. Environmental recovery in Kenya. Chichester, UK: Wiley.
Vanlauwe, B., Diels, J., Sanginga, N., & Merckx, R. (Eds.) (2002). Integrated plant nutrient management in sub-Saharan Africa. Wallingford, UK: CABI.
Voortman, R. L., & Brouwer, J. (2003). An empirical analysis of the simultaneous effects of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium in millet production on spatially variable fields in SW Niger. Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems, 66, 143–164.
Voortman, R. L., Brouwer, J., & Albersen, P. J. (2004). Characterization of spatial soil variability and its effect on millet yield on Sudano-Sahelian coversands in SW Niger. Geoderma, 121, 65–82.
Wiggins, S. (1995). Change in African farming systems between the mid-1970s and the mid-1980s. Journal of International Development, 7, 807–848.
Wit, C. T. de (1986). Introduction. In H. van Keulen & J. Wolf (Eds.), Modelling of agricultural production : Weather, soils and crops (pp. 3–10). Simulation monographs. Wageningen, The Netherlands: PUDOC..
Wopereis, M. C. S., Tamélokpo, A., Ezui, K., Gnakpénou, D., Fofana, B., & Breman, H. (in press). Mineral fertilizer management of maize on farmer fields differing in organic inputs in the West African savanna. Field Crops Research.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2008 Springer Science+Business Media B.V
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Breman, H., Fofana, B., Mando, A. (2008). The Lesson of Drente's “Essen”: Soil Nutrient Depletion in sub-Saharan Africa and Management Strategies for Soil Replenishment. In: Braimoh, A.K., Vlek, P.L.G. (eds) Land Use and Soil Resources. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-6778-5_8
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-6778-5_8
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-1-4020-6777-8
Online ISBN: 978-1-4020-6778-5
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental ScienceEarth and Environmental Science (R0)